HOW COULD WE BRING BACK THE ENVIRONMENTAL OMBUDSMAN?

HOW COULD WE BRING BACK THE ENVIRONMENTAL OMBUDSMAN?

The Environmental Ombudsman is gone, but the environmental problems that justified its creation are still very much with us.

To cut a long story short, the Environmental Ombudsman of yore disappeared when Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales left office. The reason is simple: it was created merely through an internal office order and not through an Act of Congress. As a result, when the leadership changed, the watchdog quietly went to sleep.

If we want to bring it back this time, we should do it right.

The Philippines is not lacking in environmental laws. We have Republic Act No. 9003 or the Ecological Solid Waste Management Act, the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the National Integrated Protected Areas System Act, and many others. Neither are we lacking in government agencies. We have the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), local government units, and various regulatory bodies.

But there is one thing we are lacking: a watchdog on top of them all.

During its peak years under Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales, the Environmental Ombudsman Team aggressively filed cases against dozens of local governments and hundreds of officials for maintaining illegal open dumpsites and violating environmental laws. For the first time, mayors realized that environmental neglect could lead to suspension, dismissal, and perpetual disqualification from public office.

Today, who is afraid of violating environmental laws?

Apparently, not many.

Open dumpsites continue to exist. Illegal logging persists. Watersheds remain under threat. Improper waste disposal continues despite decades of public campaigns on recycling and solid waste management.

Nowadays, it has become fashionable to complain about corruption as though it were the country's only problem. We trust that the existing Ombudsman will run after corrupt officials. But who will run after those who poison our rivers, destroy our forests, and pollute our air?

Pollution is not a victimless crime.

The World Health Organization estimates that millions of premature deaths worldwide are linked to air pollution every year. In our own country, tragedies such as the collapse of the Payatas dumpsite remind us that environmental negligence can kill. Flooding, landslides, and water shortages are often consequences of poor environmental governance.

Do we still remember the Writ of Kalikasan? It was once hailed as one of the strongest environmental legal remedies in the world. Yet what good is a powerful legal instrument if there is no institution aggressively using it and monitoring compliance?

I believe Congress should enact a law creating a permanent Deputy Ombudsman for the Environment under Republic Act No. 6770, the Ombudsman Act of 1989. This office should have its own budget, investigators, prosecutors, and regional field units. It should have the power to investigate environmental malfeasance, misfeasance, and nonfeasance by public officials.

Why not also harness technology? Satellite monitoring, geo-tagged citizen reports, and integrated environmental databases could automatically flag illegal dumpsites, deforestation, and encroachments into protected areas.

And why not empower cooperatives, indigenous peoples, and environmental organizations to become official citizen monitors?

The laws already exist. The agencies already exist. What is missing is fear of accountability.

An Environmental Ombudsman would not create new environmental laws. It would simply ensure that the laws we already have are actually enforced.

Our forests, rivers, coastlines, and mountains cannot hire lawyers to defend themselves. They need a watchdog that barks loudly and bites when necessary.

The Environmental Ombudsman once existed. There is no reason why we cannot bring it back—this time with a permanent legal foundation and with enough teeth to protect the environment for generations to come.

RAMON IKE V. SENERES

www.facebook.com/ike.seneres  iseneres@yahoo.com  senseneres.blogspot.com  09088877282/07-18-2027

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