The scarcity of water is still rampant in some parts of our country. Not everyone has equal access to basic, clean water. That’s precisely the reason why, the MJB Cares Foundation upholds the United Nations Sustainable Goal: Clean Water and Sanitation as it awarded a water system reservoir on July 5, 2023, at Sitio Laburon, Barangay Matupe, San Fernando, Bukidnon, in partnership with the 89th Infantry Battalion and the Local Government Unit of San Fernando, Bukidnon.
Access to water is a fundamental right for every individual. However, it has been a challenge for Barangay Matupe as they are located at the pinnacle of a mountain with no nearby source of water. While most of us take our access to water for granted, these people have been suffering for years with no water. This predicament has been taken advantage of by the insurgent groups to recruit, influence, and wreck havoc in the area.
“Sa una, kita namo na unsa ka baga ang NPA. Una, walang eskwelahan diri. Then, nag problema ta kay walay tubig. Lisod kaayo pag walay tubig. Ang uban, nagkasakit. Unya, ang 89th IB , nangayo tabang sa MJB Cares Foundation para magkita paaagi para ma solve ang atoang problema. Walay pag duha duha, nag hatag silag budget para maka palit ug mga materials. Ang tanan sa Charlie Company, nag tinabangan para makabutang ug connection para maka abot diri ang tubig sa Barangay Matupe. Mangkamot mi sa among kaya para inyoha. Puhon, sa sunod, maayo na jud ang Barangay Matupe. Kana nag pag higugma ni MJB Cares Foundation sainyoha.“
– 1st LT Ariel O. Asentista, Commanding Officer, 89th IB
The Charlie Company, 89th IB, guarantees that they will continue to battle terrorism and render basic services together with their stakeholders to end armed conflicts and start progress. The people of Matupe deserve a peaceful, progressive community.
“Katong adlaw ang turnover sa water system, Daghang salamat sa MJB Cares Foundation na solve ang amoang problema sa tubig. Kaangayan at kalinawan: – kani ang amoang parangarap sa amoang barangay.“
– Hon. Jamil Demaocor Barangay Kagawad, Barangay Matupe
While 84.4% of families have access to safe water, around 56.9% of households do not treat their water. Substantial numbers of people suffer from water scarcity and lack access to basic sanitation. They are at risk for water borne disease. Can you imagine a life where you rely solely on rainwater with no safety treatment? As Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs states, we need to attend to our basic physiological needs to survive as individuals and fully actualize our being.
The MJB Cares Foundation will try to fill in the gaps, render what we can, and build what we can. MJB Cares Foundation, dili ta ganahan sa kabuot. Ganahan ta tanan sa kaangayan, Tayo, kailangan natin ng education. Yan ang focus ng aming Foundation. Pero paano makaka focus sa education kung wala tayong basic necessities kagaya ng tubig? Kaya naglayon ang aming foundation na matugunan ang mga pangangailangan niyo dito sa barangay Matupe. Naay source sa tubig, Pero layo kaayo. Sa taas pa sa bundok. Kaya mi nag contact kay 1st LT Ariel Asentista para mahimo ta ang project water reservoir.
“Tabangan nato ang AFP, aron maging okay ang atong kinabuhi, naay kalinaw. Ang tanan ni, para sa inyoha.”
– Mary Joy Bustamante, Founder, MJB Cares Foundation
It is a relatively small community of Indigenous People – Matigsalug Tribe. Matigsalug” means “people along the Salug River. They are the few remaining indigenous tribes that continue to thrive in this world full of modernization. These groups ought to be protected from terrorism and cultural shifts. The preservation of their culture holds water as it is our irrefutable connection to our past traditions, customs, beliefs, and practices. As a nation, we should not solely focus on individual progress but on an inclusive society where we develop, together.
While we all mobilize in this fast-paced, ever-changing world, we conveniently forget that some of us are simply left behind. They can’t simply keep up, not because they chose not to, but rather due to their lack of access to even the most basic human rights. Who are we to keep all these rights to ourselves?
At MJB Cares Foundation, we truly believe that we all have the power to level the playing field. The right to basic water is for everyone.
