Volume 12 Number 4 April 2015 Serial Num

Journal of US-China Public Administration

Volume 12, Number 4, April 2015 (Serial Number 114)

Contents

Local Government and Democracy

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) XII: Programs and Performance

255 Ernie C. Cerado, Cielito E. Llano

Knowledge and Perceptions on Urban Health Hazards in Zambia: A Case Study of Kitwe District

262 Cecilia Muchepa Muzyamba

Professionalization and Public Service Career in Mexico—Toward a Policy of Urgent State

273 Roberto Moreno Espinosa, Oscar Mauricio Covarrubias Moreno

Management Issues and Practice

The Talents as the Most Valuable Intangible Assets of the Company

282 Andrzej Janowski

Assessing Emotional Intelligence Competencies in Public Sector Petroleum Companies in Egypt

290 Hazem Halim, Karim Salem, Omnia Hassan

Study on Authoritarian Leader-Member Relationship

304 Pingping Liu, Hui Wang

Economic Development and Barriers

The Effectiveness of SMEs Business Sector in AP Vojvodina

314 Vera Zelenovi ć, Dragan Lukač

Economic Barriers and Determinants of Employment Rate Changes in the Eastern Wielkopolska Region

325

B łażej Balewski

Journal of US-China Public Administration, April 2015, Vol. 12, No. 4, 255-261

doi: 10.17265/1548-6591/2015.04.001

DAVID PUBLISHING

Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) XII: Programs and Performance

Ernie C. Cerado  Sultan Kudarat State University, Tacurong City, Philippines

Cielito E. Llano Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency, Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, Philippines

This study focused on describing the implementation of PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) programs and their performance in 2012. These programs were primarily referred to demand and supply reduction while performance centered on community awareness and the agency accomplishments. Forty-two (42) staffs of PDEA and 275 community members served as respondents of this inquiry. Essentially, a descriptive survey design was used employing two sets of validated survey questionnaires to gather data. Findings revealed that PDEA programs vis-à-vis demand reduction and supply reduction were well-implemented. Moreover, the respondents indicated that they were “aware” on dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, provisions of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, common causes of drug use and abuse, and adverse effect of dangerous drugs on health. On agency accomplishments, PDEA XII records showed an average of 102 arrests annually. The agency apprehended these drug criminals in 78 buy-bust operations; a total of 23,408 grams of drugs were seized, and used as evidences in 145 cases filed in courts. Apparently, the use of the same vehicles both for intelligence operations and anti-narcotic entrapment was the most serious problem of the agency. Finally, it was concluded that the implementation of PDEA programs is highly related to community awareness but not to the agency performance.

Keywords: drug enforcement, law enforcement, Philippine Law, government programs, agency performance

The threat of drug problem cannot be simply miscalculated. Obviously, it is a global concern. In a recently posted World Drug Report 2014, it is pegged that “in 2012, between 3.5% and 7.0% of the world population aged 15-64, had used an illicit drug at least once in the previous year”. On the same period, approximately 183,000 drug-related deaths were reported corresponding to a mortality rate of 40 deaths per million among the population aged 15-64. It is also indicated that men are more likely to use drugs than women (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime [UNODC], 2014).

As early as 1988, the United Nations General Assembly had already adopted a Political Declaration considering that “drugs affect all sectors of society in all countries”, particularly, “drug abuse affects the

Corresponding author: Ernie C. Cerado, Ph.D., assistant professor, Colleges of Teacher Education and Graduate Studies, Sultan Kudarat State University; research fields: mathematics education, educational management, and institutional development and management. E-mail: eccphd@yahoo.com.

Cielito E. Llano, Ph.D., acting deputy regional director for operations, Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (PDEA-ARMM); research fields: public management and institutional development. E-mail: cielito.llano@yahoo.com.

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

freedom and development of young people, the world’s most valuable asset”. In said document, member states expressed their total resolve and commitment to combat the world drug problem through practical action and pooling of resources (United Nations General Assembly, 1998).

Moreover, at a special regional conference held in Myanmar, senior policy, law enforcement, and justice delegates cited that East and Southeast Asia continue to be the world’s largest markets for synthetic drugs. It was reported that early on 2008, a program was already initiated to enhance the capacity of states and authorities in these regions to generate, manage, analyze, report, and use synthetic drug and precursor information, and to apply this evidence-based knowledge to strategy, policy and program design, and implementation. Eleven countries in the region include the Philippines accept related assistance from UNODC

(United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) through Global Smart 1 .

Apparently, the wrath of illicit drug activities is universal thus it did not spare the country. In a 2013 PDEA (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency) Report, it cited that illegal drug trafficking remains as the most pervasive drug activity in the country. Accordingly, drug traffickers never stop discovering innovative ways to hide from viewing their illegitimate transactions and activities. Consistent with the world statistics, the account showed 86.60% of the personalities arrested related to drugs are male.

Besides, in 2006, a columnist even stated that illegal drug abuse in the country has reached epidemic. His claim was due primarily on observations that illegal drug trade penetrated as far as the police and military establishments. Men in uniforms are allegedly assisting in local ports on the transshipment of drugs to the US and from other countries in Asia. Politicians are even bribed of drug monies. Moreover, poor and affluent

family members alike go into drugs 2 .

Most recently, the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Economic Community (AEC) by 2015 came into being. As envisioned, the AEC will “transform ASEAN into a region with free movement of goods, services, investment, skilled labour, and freer flow of capital” 3 . The realization of the new regional order might as well promote the proliferation of illegal drug industry at its full in Southeast Asia. Understanding the state of illegal drugs at the macro level, and the new economic order in progress may not be sufficient. Nonetheless, it is still significant and more logical to examine more specifics of the issue. Locally, the PDEA is the lead government agency that addresses the drug problems (RA 9165—Republic Act No. 9165). Regional offices are likewise set up nationwide to implement the agency major programs.

The accomplishments of the PDEA programs with the coordination of the community and other sectors of society can be further supported if the justice system is also doing its role. The drug law enforcement operations are a reflection that the agency is doing its duties and responsibilities, which could lead to the prosecution of drug cases. Additionally, prosecution of drug cases and conviction of criminals may be impossible without the cooperation of the community (Reyes, 2008). How successful PDEA Region XII did its mandates and performed as an agency in order to eradicate the illicit drug problems in local setting would be the core of this inquiry.

In particular, the study had contemplated on the following objectives: (1) Determining the implementation of PDEA programs relative to demand reduction and supply reduction; (2) Assessing the community’s level of awareness on dangerous drugs and controlled precursors and

1 Retrieved from http://www.unodc.org. 2 Retrieved from http://www.mabuhayradio.com. 3 Retrieved from http://www.asean.org.

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

essential chemicals, provisions of RA 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002, common causes of drug use/abuse, and adverse effect on health of using dangerous drugs;

(3) Describing the agency’s accomplishments in terms of arrests, drug law enforcement operations, and cases filed in court; (4) Relating the implementation of PDEA programs to the agency’s performance; (5) Finding out the problems met by PDEA in the implementation of its programs.

Conceptual Framework

RA 9165 or the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002 provided for the creation of PDEA that was mandated to curb problems relating to illegal drugs. The programs and activities undertaken by the agency are primarily based on its vision, mission, core values, objectives, and strategies that can be lumped into reducing supply and reducing demand (Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency [PDEA], 2009).

Independent Variable

Dependent Variables

Figure 1. Conceptual paradigm.

Most likely, the majority to benefit from the programs of PDEA are the communities—the general public. Hence, raising the awareness of the whole community about the agency’s activities could affect everybody’s life and may encourage them to work together to keep things in order. Based on this, PDEA can take advantage of educating the public by effectively teaching each community in the country how to fight drug problems (Rojas, 2009).

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

This study relies on the premise that effective implementation of PDEA programs is associated to its performance. As the conceptual paradigm in Figure 1 shows, the independent variables in the study are the PDEA programs of demand reduction and supply reduction. Demand reduction consists of information campaign and inter-agency collaboration as sub-variables. Conversely, supply reduction consists of intelligence operations, narcotics investigation, and compliance investigation.

The dependent variable is PDEA’s performance as measured by the level of community awareness, and agency accomplishments like number of arrests effected, number of drug law enforcement operations, amount of drugs seized, and the number of cases filed in court.

Methodology

In realizing the foregoing ends, a region-wide study was effectively undertaken in 2012 to include the provinces of Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sarangani, and North Cotabato, and the city of General Santos. Aptly, the descriptive survey method of research was chosen since it involved depicting the existing status of a program and its performance and that necessary data were obtained through survey means and documentary analysis. Moreover, this investigation made use of purposive and random sampling schemes in getting the number of respondents from the agency and the community, respectively. Thus, a total of 42 PDEA employees coming from the regional office, provincial and city posts, and another 275 respondents representing various sectors of the community such as the youth, professionals, law enforcers, elderly, and business people were considered.

In gathering the needed data, two sets of questionnaires were originally developed by the researcher. Additionally, experts from the academe and the agency were tapped to duly validate the contents of said instruments. To ensure reliability, a try-out was also administered to 50 community members that actually produced a Cronbach alpha of 0.79 suggesting its acceptability.

In particular, the first set was intended for PDEA personnel that basically solicited information on the two essential programs, namely: supply reduction and demand reduction. Respondents have evaluated pertinent indicators of the program utilizing a rating scale as: 5 (Outstanding), 4 (Very Satisfactory), 3 (Satisfactory), 2 (Fair), and 1 (Poor).

On the other hand, the second set was designed for the community members in gathering facts relative to their awareness level. Respondents evaluated each indicator following a rating scale as: 5 (Fully Aware), 4 (Aware), 3 (Moderately Aware), 2 (Unaware), and 1 (Fully Unaware). Documentary analysis was used as well in collecting data on agency accomplishments derived from official records such as number of arrests affected, number of drug law enforcement operations, amount of drugs seized, and the number of cases filed in court.

In data gathering, the researcher merely adopted the herein flow chart as shown (see Figure 2). In statistical treatments, the researcher made use of both the descriptive and inferential tools. To describe

the implementation of the PDEA programs and the level of community awareness, the computation of mean and standard deviation was done. For the agency’s common problems and accomplishments such as number of arrests, drug law enforcement operations, amount of seized drugs, and filed cases in court, the frequency count was applied. Finally, the Pearson product-moment correlation was used to determine the direction and degree of relationship of PDEA’s programs to community awareness and the agency’s accomplishments. All calculations were done using SPSS Version 17 after being encoded in Microsoft Excel worksheets. Appropriate hypothesis testing was performed at the 0.05 level of significance.

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

Figure 2. Data gathering flow chart.

Results and Discussions

With the foregoing methodologies, the study derived these major findings:

PDEA Program Implementation

(1) On demand reduction program, both information campaigns (M = 4.17, sd = 0.22) and inter-agency collaboration activities (M = 4.02, sd = 0.08) were found to be implemented at “very satisfactory” level; (2) Likewise, supply reduction program was also implemented consistently at “very satisfactory” level as shown by these means and deviations: intelligence operations (M = 4.11, sd = 0.08), narcotics investigations (M = 4.23, sd = 0.13), and conduct of compliance investigations (M = 4.00, sd = 0.16);

(3) By and large, the PDEA programs on demand and supply reduction were found to be well-implemented.

Community Awareness

(1) In terms of dangerous drugs and controlled precursors, and essential chemicals, the community members gave a rating of “aware” (M = 4.01, sd = 0.82);

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

(2) The community members rated their awareness on the provisions of RA 9165 as “aware” (M = 3.95, sd = 0.35); (3) In terms of common causes of drug use/abuse, they gave the same rating of “aware” (M = 4.05, sd = 0.04); (4) In terms of adverse effects on health of using dangerous drugs, the community members gave a rating of “aware” (M = 4.03, sd = 0.08); (5) In general, the community was found to have knowledge and understanding of the dangerous drugs and controlled precursors and essential chemicals, provisions of RA 9165, common causes of drug use/abuse, and adverse effects on health of using dangerous drugs (M = 4.01, sd = 0.37).

Agency Accomplishments

(1) In five local government units in Region XII involved in the study, the PDEA had arrested a total of 102 groups/persons in 2012; (2) The agency had apprehended the foregoing drug criminals from the 78 buy-bust operations conducted during the year; (3) From these operations, a total of 23,408 grams of drugs were seized and used as evidences in litigation; (4) Seized drugs were included in the evidence for the 145 cases filed in court by the agency against drug

criminals.

PDEA Programs and Performance

(1) It was found out that the implementation of PDEA programs and the level of community awareness were significantly related (r comp = 0.95 > r tab(0.05) = 0.8114); (2) Contrary, the implementation of PDEA programs was not related to the agency performance, such as average number of arrests (r comp = 0.41), buy-bust operations (r comp = 0.56), amount of drugs seized (r comp = 0.62), and cases filed in court (r comp = 0.47).

Major Problems of PDEA

(1) Vehicles for intelligence and anti-narcotic entrapment operations are the same. This resulted to the drug criminals’ familiarity and easy recognition of the same that prompted them to escape and eventually evade arrest during operations;

(2) PDEA agents are less effective due to work burnout. It happened most likely when same agents did tiresome multitasking responsibilities like clerical works, field operations, and appearing in courts during litigation;

(3) Clogging of drug cases in courts leads to slow resolution of crimes. Aside from the many criminal and civil cases being filed in courts every day, the drug cases are added to the bulk causing further congestion of unresolved cases.

Conclusions and Recommendations

With the foregoing findings, it is concluded that PDEA programs on demand and supply reduction were well-implemented. Apparently, the community members have knowledge and understanding relative to dangerous drugs, controlled precursors and essential chemicals, provisions of RA 9165, common causes of drug use/abuse, and adverse effects on health of using dangerous drugs. Besides, it was ascertained that the agency performed well through the substantial arrests made, amount of drugs seized, buy-bust operations

PDEA XII: PROGRAMS AND PERFORMANCE

261

conducted, and cases filed in courts. It was also verified that the implementation of PDEA programs was related to the awareness level of the community. Nevertheless, said program implementation was proven not related to agency accomplishments.

Considering the results of the study, it is recommended that relevant and sufficient budget may be appropriated to PDEA by Congress for the purpose of increasing its manpower, procuring the necessary and proper vehicles, conducting more anti-drug campaigns and advocacies, as well as providing professional development opportunities to personnel. It is equally important to consider establishing a special court to exclusively attend to all drug-related cases for a speedy yet judicious resolution of the same. Another study is likewise suggested to perhaps explore the apparent effect of government allocation to drug-related crimes.

References

ASEAN Economic Community (AEC). (2007). Retrieved from http://www.asean.org Illegal-drug abuse now an epidemic in the Philippines. (2008). Retrieved from http://www.mabuhayradio.com KidsHealth Organization. (2010). Know drugs. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org National Drug Intelligence Center. (2006). The impact of drugs on society. Retrieved from http://www.justice.gov PDEA Annual Report. (2010). PDEA Academy, Camp General Castañeda, Cavite, Philippines. Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA). (2009). PDEA Modules. PDEA Academy, Camp General Castañeda, Cavite,

Philippines. Republic Act No. 9165. (2007). Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. Retrieved from http://en.wikipilipinas.org Reyes, D. (2008). Prosecution in the Philippines. Retrieved from http://www.article2.org Rojas, A. (2009). Ideal community. Retrieved from http://www.mightystudents.com Sanchez, C. A., & Agpaoa, F. B. (1997). Contemporary social problems and issues (3rd ed.). Manila: National Book Store. United Nations General Assembly. (1998). Resolution S-20/2 on Political Declaration. UN Headquarters, NY, USA. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). (2011). Drug demand reduction. Retrieved from http://www.unodc.org United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). (2014). World Drug Report 2014. Vienna: United Nations Publication.

Journal of US-China Public Administration, April 2015, Vol. 12, No. 4, 262-272

doi: 10.17265/1548-6591/2015.04.002

DAVID PUBLISHING

Knowledge and Perceptions on Urban Health Hazards in Zambia:

A Case Study of Kitwe District

Cecilia Muchepa Muzyamba  Zambian Open University, Lusaka, Zambia

Knowledge and perceptions of urban health hazards may vary in different communities. An attempt was made to study the levels of knowledge and perceptions on urban health hazards in Zambia: a case study of Kitwe District. The study was done in Nkana West, Chimwemwe, and Saint Anthony (St. Anthony). The respondents in these areas identified the following factors as being hazardous: air pollution, promiscuous behavior, sanitation, poor houses, solid and faecal waste management, noise, lack of recreational facilities, inadequate food supplies, life styles, and overcrowdings. The study revealed that 98% of respondents knew at least a health hazard while 2% of them did not know of any. Of the 98%, there were 39.6% responses indicated that air pollution was the most hazardous followed by unhygienic environments with 35.9%. Promiscuous behavior, inadequate food supply, and garbage (solid waste) disposal with 32.1%, 30.2%, and 28.3%, respectively, were some of the most common. The responses given were related to the socio-economic status of the sample areas. The respondents were of the perception that the government was to blame over the rates of air pollution and sanitation. However, some respondents acknowledged the blame of disposing solid waste in undesignated areas. The promiscuous behavior was attributed to inadequate recreation facilities, unemployment, and a lot of beer outlets. There was therefore, need for government through the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Kitwe City Council (KCC) to carry basic health campaigns on the environmental health hazards. The construction of houses should be monitored by the housing (buildings) department of the KCC in order to avoid people putting up buildings where the drainage canals are supposed to pass. This would help minimize water logging.

Keywords: hazard, health, knowledge, perceptions, urban

Urban health is threatened amidst a lot of activities as people try to fend for themselves. Health is cardinal in order for the country to develop its all spheres. Therefore, in 1994, the World Health Organization (WHO) came up with the campaign for the “health for all” (Government of the Republic of Zambia and United Nations Development Programme [GRZ & UNDP], 2013). This was after realization that any country cannot prosper with a sickly population as financial capital would be diverted toward the procurement of drugs and provision of holistic health care delivery. The urban health hazards are not only a challenge to national development but also potential threats to human wellbeing.

Urban health hazards in Zambia are numerous and these need to be addressed if people’s lives are to be safe guarded. Some of the health hazards the people of Zambia are faced with are: noise pollution, road

Corresponding author: Cecilia Muchepa Muzyamba, Ph.D. candidate and lecturer in geography, Zambian Open University, Lusaka, Zambia; research fields: spatial and temporal distribution of diseases (medical geography), geography of ageing and eco-tourism, and spatial development initiatives (SDIs). E-mail: ceciliamuchepa@yahoo.com.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

accidents, water pollution, overcrowding (in homes and communities), poor sanitation, lack or inadequate food supplies, air pollution, and urban life styles of the people. Urban life styles are perceived as health hazards due to their dietary patterns (Akhtar, 1988). Chanda (2004) states that in metallurgical and mine operations, there are variations in the concentration of sulphur gas emissions. These vary from mine to mine and time to time. However, whatever the quantity, they still have repurcations on the health of the people and also on the biodiversity. This means that the Copperbelt of Zambia is greatly affected since copper is the chief foreign exchange earner.

The study was done in Kitwe—the hub of the Copperbelt. The town is centrally located in the region and all routes from parts of the Copperbelt converge here (see Figure 1).

Figure 1. Map showed the location of Kitwe on the Copperbelt. Source: Google Maps Data (2015).

Kitwe is located at 12 o 49’ South and 28 12’ East. The town was founded in 1936 and attained a city status in 1966. Kitwe is the second fastest growing district after Mpongwe with an annual growth rate of 3.2% and

has the largest population of 517,543 people (Central Statistical Office [CSO], 2012, p. 15). The district has a land area of 777 km 2 and this translates to a population density of 666.1/km 2 . It is the highest densely populated of all the 10 Copperbelt districts as illustrated in Table 1. Kitwe has developed from an industrial and commercial area and later to an important agricultural area. The good central position of the city in the Copperbelt area made it the most popular choice for industrial developers.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA The study focused on Kitwe as it is one of the most industrious and densely populated area on the

Copperbelt. Three residential areas were selected under the classification of high, medium, and low cost housing units. These have an inverse correlation with population sizes. The sample areas were Nkana West, Chimwemwe, and Saint Anthony (St. Anthony), respectively. Other than this categorization, these areas are of different socio-economic statuses. St. Anthony is a squatter settlement with a population of low income levels, Chimwemwe is a city council residential area with a population of medium income levels, and Nkana West is a mine township with at least high income levels.

Table 1 Population Distribution of the Copperbelt Districts

District Population

Population density (population /km 2 ) Chililabombwe 91,883

Area (km 2 )

409.1 Note. Source: Central Statistical Office (CSO) (2012, p. 17).

Ndola 451,246

Statement of the Problem

There are gaps in urban health hazards in Zambia as not much research has been done in relation to the subject. However, vigorous research has been done on health, health safety, and risks. The people could have knowledge on the urban health hazards but perceive them differently. Therefore, this study wanted to establish the knowledge and perceptions of the people of Kitwe on urban health hazards.

Methodology

An interview schedule was used to obtain information from the households that were purposely chosen. These interviews drew information on the respondents’ background, knowledge, and perceptions on urban health hazards.

Sample Areas and Sample Size

Three areas were selected according to socio-economic and designations of squatter, council, and mine townships. The sample areas were St. Anthony, Chimwemwe, and Nkana West, and the sample sizes were 19,

17, and 17 households, respectively.

Results and Discussion

Sample Characteristics

The sample comprised of 22 males and 31 females as shown in Table 2.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA 265

Table 2 shows that 41.5% of the respondents were males and 58.5% of them were females. Nkana West had the biggest number of females who indicated that the males were at work.

Table 2 Respondents by Gender

Nkana West Gender

Whole sample

St. Anthony

Chimwemwe

Percent (%) Male

Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) Frequency

22 41.5 9 17.0 8 15.1 5 9.4 Female

31 58.5 10 18.8 9 17.0 12 22.7 Total

19 35.8 17 32.1 17 32.1 Note. Source: Field Data (2014).

The average level of education was secondary but 29.4% of the respondents from Nkana West (15.1%) and the respondents from Chimwemwe (11.3%) were well above the average. This meant that they were well-educated to the level where they were able to make rational decisions about their wellbeing. Those in St. Anthony have only attained up to secondary education level (see Table 3).

Table 3 Respondents’ Education Levels

Nkana West Education level

Whole sample

St. Anthony

Chimwemwe

Percent (%) None

Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) Frequency Percent (%) Frequency

1 1.9 1 1.9 0 0 0 0 Primary 12 22.6 6 11.3 4 7.6 2 3.8 Secondary 26 49.1 12 22.6 7 13.2 7 13.2 College 12 22.6 0 0 5 9.4 7 13.2 University 2 3.8 0 0 1 1.9 1 1.9 Total 53 100 19 35.8 17 31.1 17 31.1

Note. Source: Field Data (2014).

Knowledge About Urban Health Hazards

The survey revealed that 98% of the respondents knew about the urban health hazards while 2% did not know of any. The hazards that were identified were:

(1) Sanitation: This was attributed to poor drainage system that left a lot of stagnant water, poor garbage disposal, and lack of/inadequate toilets; (2) Unhygienic environmental conditions; (3) Inadequate water supply; (4) Noise, water, and air pollution; (5) Improper housing units; (6) Too many alcoholic outlets and night clubs; (7) Accidents; (8) Overcrowding; (9) Lack of recreation facilities; (10) Peer pressure;

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA (11) Use of contraceptives;

(12) Inadequate or lack of formal education; (13) Poisonous plants. The respondents were asked to mention multiple health hazards they knew, from the information in Table 4,

39.6% of the responses indicated that unhygienic environments were a great hazard to people’s health; while 35.9% of the responses showed that air pollution was equally a big concern. Promiscuous behavior, inadequate food supply, and poor garbage disposal were also ranked high in their contribution toward the health risks of the people of Kitwe. Out of all the known health hazards, the respondents’ prioritized them as follows (see Table 5):

Table 4 Respondents’ Knowledge of Urban Health Hazards

Urban health hazard

Frequency of the responses

Percentage (%)

Poor drainage

Inadequate food

Unhygienic environments

Poor garbage disposal

Unemployment 7 13.2 Water pollution

Noise pollution

Improper housing units

Too many alcoholic outlets

Poor sanitation

Air pollution

Promiscuous behavior

Inadequate water supply

Other hazards

Note. Source: Field Data (2014).

Table 5 Respondents’ Order of the Most Common Urban Health Hazards

S/No. Urban health hazard

Percentage (%) 1 Air pollution

Frequency

15 28.3 2 Promiscuous behavior

8 15.1 3 Poor sanitation

7 13.2 4 Unemployment

4 7.6 5 Poor drainage

4 7.6 6 Water pollution

3 5.7 7 Too many mosquitoes

3 5.7 8 Inadequate food supply

2 3.8 9 Poor waste disposal

2 3.8 10 Too many alcoholic outlets

2 3.8 11 All of the above

2 3.8 12 I do not know

1 1.9 Note. Source: Field Data (2014).

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

Air Pollution

According to the Environmental Council of Zambia (ECZ, 2005), it defines air pollution as the presence of any chemical, physical, and biological agent that modifies the natural air condition of the atmosphere. The most widespread types of pollutants are ozone (smog) and particle (soot) that are accompanied by other serious pollutants such as carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, sulphur dioxide, and toxins like mercury, arsenic, benzene, and formaldehyde. Air pollution is detrimental to life. These pollutants have the capacity of making the population sick from various diseases such as neural disorders (lead and benzene) and respiratory disorders (carbon dioxide and sulphur dioxide) (Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety [CCOHS], 2013; Lusakatimes.com, 2012).

In 1922 and 1950, Poga-Rica suffered air pollution that was caused by an accident from an oil refinery plant. This accident killed and sickened workers and residents. In 1950, there was London smog that left 4,700 people dead. The smog was caused by industrial smoke and sulphur dioxide (Burton, Kates, & White, 1978). Air pollution can also take the form of thermal pollution due to atmospheric interferences by the aviation industry and volcanic eruptions in areas where such happen. The frequency of planes is ever increasing worldwide. Zambia may seem not to have her own airline, but has quite a number of international airlines that use her air space and air ports. Therefore, this also contributes to air pollution.

Zambia is basically a copper mining country and Kitwe houses one of the underground mines where copper is mined and processed. During the processing of this copper, sulphur monoxide is emitted and this transforms into sulphur dioxide after oxidation. This gas has a number of effects on the population and the environment. The pungent smell causes respiratory irritation that causes repeated coughing, skin and eyes irritation, nasal and throat mucus membrane corrosion. The effect on the environment is intense during the rainy season as acid rain is produced. This not only kills the plants but also pollutes the ground. Nkana West which is close to the Nkana mine suffers these effects. That is why 82.4% of the respondents in this residential area ranked air pollution as a major health hazard whilst the respondents of Chimwemwe and St. Anthony ranked promiscuous behavior (17.7%) and sanitation (29.4%), respectively, as major health hazards. Only 5.9% of the respondents in Chimwemwe and St. Anthony knew that air pollution was detrimental to their health. This shows that despite the two residential areas being closer to Mindolo shaft, the residents did not experience air pollution as much as those in Nkana West. Figure 2 shows smoke being emitted into the atmosphere in Kitwe. One dimension of pollution that has been neglected is indoor air pollution. This affects the quality of the air indoors and this is by far the most deadly risk globally (Wikipedia, retrieved March 18, 2015). A major source of indoor pollution in developing countries like Zambia is the burning of biomass (wood, charcoal, and crop residue) for cooking and heating. This was common in St. Anthony and parts of Chimwemwe townships. Nkana West residents supplement their electric source of energy with charcoal.

Promiscuous Behavior

Fifteen point one percent (15.1%) of the whole sample revealed that promiscuous behavior was a health hazard. They attributed this to the numerous alcoholic outlets and unemployment which encouraged illicit relationships. These made the residents more vulnerable to sexually transmitted infections such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). Twenty four percent (24%) of the respondents in Chimwemwe knew of the promiscuous behavior as a hazard and only 18% perceived it as harmful to human health. In St. Anthony, 58% of the respondents had knowledge about

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA promiscuous behavior and only 21% perceived it as a health hazard. In Nkana West, 18% of the respondents

had knowledge about promiscuous behavior and only 6% of them perceived it as a health hazard. The results indicate the inverse relationship between the socio-economic statuses of the residential areas and the occurrence of promiscuous behavior.

Figure 2. Air pollution in Kitwe. Source: Google Maps Data (2015).

Poor Sanitation

Sanitation is a broader aspect as it encompasses a lot of things such as waste, drainage, toilets, nature of housing units, ventilation, and water sources, to mention just some.

Waste Disposal

There are two types of waste the study brought to the fore and these are: the faecal waste and solid waste. The faecal waste occurs as a result of old pipes and manholes bursting and overflowing respectively. This scenario was common in Chimwemwe and Nkana West. St. Anthony had a different problem and this was that of inadequate pit latrines. Households shared these facilities. The areas where the some houses have been constructed are so small such that they cannot accommodate even a small pit latrine. To some extent, other people defecate in plastics or opaque beer containers which they throw on garbage heaps. This situation is a volatile health hazard. Solid waste disposal has become an environmental issue as local councils and Environmental Council of Zambia (ECZ) have discouraged the burning of refuse in compounds by households.

Through the Public Private Partnerships (PPPs), solid waste disposal is management by a lot of stake holders who have come on board. The refuse was collected after a waste management fee had been paid to the company. The scenario was same country wide. However, in Kitwe, not every resident had the capacity to pay for the service. Some of them resorted to indiscriminate disposal of garbage thereby enhancing the sanitation problem (see Figure 3).

Poor Drainage

Poor drainage was caused by blockage of the drainage canals that had become solid waste dump sites. Some areas were faced with water logging as illustrated in Figure 4.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

Figure 3. Solid waste disposal. Source: Field Data (2014).

Figure 4. Water logged area in Kitwe. Source: Field Data (2014).

Types of Houses

This was a concern in St. Anthony and some part of Chimwemwe. The houses were small with a few windows for the households that could afford the glass panes and small holes in the walls to let air in cases where the households could not afford to fix windows. St. Anthony by virtue of being a squatter compound faced challenges in housing. In Chimwemwe, a designated council residential area had either small adjacent apartment to the main house or on the peripheral areas of the yard that were poorly ventilated. The types of houses in these two areas had the potential of increasing the chances of spreading communicable diseases such as malaria (vector borne), influenza/common cold (viral), and tuberculosis (bacteria), due to poor house ventilation and overcrowding.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

Water Sources

The residents use different sources of water. Most households in Nkana West have piped water supply within their premises, while some in St. Anthony use communal taps and shallow wells. In Chimwemwe, due to clogging of the some pipes, water is a challenge to residents in that they have to depend on the few that are running (see Figure 5).

Figure 5. Women drawing water from a communal water source. Source: Field Data (2014).

Perceptions on the Urban Health Hazards

The respondents perceived the urban health hazards as a result of negligence of the local authority’s failure to put things in perspective in order to better their (respondents) lives. In Chimwemwe, the respondents blamed the city council, the Nkana Water and Sewerage Company (NWSC), and the government at large for the deterioration of the environmental conditions. However, they acknowledged responsibility over enhancing the illegal waste disposal in undesignated sites. Meanwhile, the respondents from St. Anthony and Nkana West blamed the mine authorities for air pollution.

Air Pollution

Forty-two percent (42%) of the respondents attributed air pollution to the mine emissions, while 36% of them attributed the health hazards with air pollution from other sources such as combustion from the automobiles, burning of domestic refuse, domestic cooking fuels (charcoal and wood), and solid waste dumps within the residential areas.

As many respondents thought that the mines were the chief pollutants, the increasing numbers of automobiles and factories were equally contributing highly to pollution through water and air contamination, and noise. The increase of automobiles is a recent phenomenon in Kitwe that after 1992 was almost dying due to the privatization and liquidation of the mines and underperforming parastatal companies respectively. The enabling investment climate that came with the change of political leadership in 2001—the “new deal government”, encouraged local, foreign, private, and public investment in Kitwe and the country as a whole.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

Another dimension to increased investment is the urban sprawl which has come with its own challenges. According to Palichino and Mollet (2003), they consider that transport is one of the major contributors to pollutants such as carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxide, sulphur dioxide, lead, and particulate matter. The WHO estimated that about “700,000 could be prevented in developing countries if pollutants were reduced to safer levels” (Palichino & Mollet, 2003, p. 8). A survey that was done in Benin to determine the motorbike drivers’ levels of carcinogenic pollution revealed that the pollution was high at cross roads and roundabouts. The main pollutants were benzene and ethyl benzene. These chemicals impact on the health of the people and cause short- and long-term effects such as tremors, drowsiness, dizziness, skin and eye irritation; and aneamia, infertility, and leukemia (cancer of the blood), respectively (American Cancer Society, 2013).

Promiscuous Behavior

Lack of recreation facilities, unemployment, lack of/inadequate food supplies were seen as reasons for illicit relationships and activities. These illicit relationships were done in order to raise money for food. The respondents blamed the city council for selling recreation parcels of land for residential plots and this resulted in inadequate or lack of recreation, especially the youths.

Beer drinking was identified as one of the sources of promiscuous behavior in St. Anthony and Chimwemwe. In these areas, there were also numerous bars and night clubs.

Poor Sanitation

The city council and NWSC are perceived to perpetuate the health hazards that the respondents identified and had knowledge about. The local council was expected to ensure and uphold sanitation levels by minimizing overcrowding in the compounds. This could be done by monitoring developmental projects in these areas to see if the residents were complying with the norms of construction.

Solid Waste Disposal

The garbage was disposed off indiscriminately. This caused it to be a health hazard. Flies and rodents found a niche in these heaps of garbage. These vectors were the carriers of bacteria and fleas that caused diarrhoeal diseases and plague, respectively. Combustion of the garbage produced odour that polluted the micro-atmosphere and also produced heat that contributed to thermal heating. Therefore, the houses that were located close to these places were heavily polluted. These areas of garbage were also breeding grounds for mosquitoes. Despite the Konkola Copper Mines carrying out the malaria control and eradication campaigns, the district was still prone to the disease (malaria).

Drainage

The Presidential Housing Initiative (PHI) of 1996 saw a lot of people in Zambia being empowered with houses as sitting tenants. The houses that belonged to the state and parastatals were sold off. This created the need for more housing units especially in the urban towns. Hunger for plots grew more and more, and infrastructural development more especially houses was on an upswing. Some houses have been constructed on road reserves and drainage areas that made it difficult for the Road Development Agency (RDA) to undertake road construction without issues of compensation. This had generally contributed to poor drainage.

In St. Anthony, there was a small nearby stream where domestic shores such as laundry are done and some children swim in this very stream. At the same time, people disposed off their garbage (plastic paper and bottles) that worsened the sanitary condition of the stream.

KNOWLEDGE AND PERCEPTIONS ON URBAN HEALTH HAZARDS IN ZAMBIA

Conclusions

The study revealed that the socio-economic variations of the sample areas had influence on the knowledge and perceptions on urban health hazards. There was need to scale up or introduce health education campaigns on a number of health hazards such as need for sexual behavioral change and positive attitudes toward sanitation and pollution. In order to avoid water logging problem that is caused by the construction of houses on drainage sites and in dambos, the government through the Kitwe City Council (KCC) should monitor the allocation of plots and the construction of houses.

The PPPs should be encouraged and enhanced in order to improve sanitation and reduce pollution.

References

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). (1998). Public health statement for sulfur dioxide. Retrieved from http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov Akhtar, R. (1988). Perceptions of urban health hazards: Examples from Lusaka. International Journal of Environmental Studies, 31(2-3), 167-172. American Cancer Society. (2013). Carcinogenic effects of air pollution. Retrieved from http://www.cancer.org Burton, I., Kates, R. W., & White, G. W. (1978). The environment as hazard. Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS). (2013). Effects of sulphur oxide on health. Retrieved from

http://www.ccohs.ca/oshanswers/ chemicals/chemical profiles/ sulfurdi.Html Central Statistical Office (CSO). (2012). 2010 census of population and housing: Population summary report. Lusaka: CSO. Chanda, R. (2004). Trade in health services. Retrieved from http://www.who.int/trade/resource/THS/en/ Environmental Council of Zambia (ECZ). (2005). State of environment reporting in Zambia: Proceedings of a training workshop

on indicator development. Lusaka: ECZ. Government of the Republic of Zambia and United Nations Development Programme (GRZ & UNDP). (2013). Millennium development goals—Progress report: Zambia 2013. GRZ and UNDP, Lusaka. Lusakatimes.com. (2012). The choking fumes in Kitwe. Retrieved from http://www.lusakatimes.com Palichino, M., & Mollet, P. (2003). Better urban mobility in developing countries. Brussels: International Association of Public

Transport.

Journal of US-China Public Administration, April 2015, Vol. 12, No. 4, 273-281

doi: 10.17265/1548-6591/2015.04.003

DAVID PUBLISHING

Professionalization and Public Service Career in Mexico—Toward a Policy of Urgent State

Roberto Moreno Espinosa  Autonomous University of the State of Mexico, Toluca, Mexico

Oscar Mauricio Covarrubias Moreno UNAM, Mexico City, Mexico

At present, the problems facing the process of professionalization and the introduction of professional service career at the three levels of government in Mexico, in order to generalize the merit principle as the basis for entry into the civil service, continue coating a large complexity in addition to resistance from state and municipal governments. In this, it is argued that only through promoting a state policy on the matter involving stakeholders: federal, state, and municipal governments, institutions forming higher education cadres for politics and public administration at the institutions of national and state administration, specialists and civil society at the end, is how it can shape a policy that will lead to greater professionalism and performance of cadres to serve the government, given the challenges facing the country in the 21st century.

Keywords: professionalism, public service, government policy

Addressing issues about civil professionalization and career service in Mexico, continue to be topics of relevance, incompleteness, and source of expectations and frustrations, linked to the vicissitudes of changes every six years in the case of the federal government and the federal entities, in little more than 2,440 triennial municipalities in the country. This phenomenon resembles the fabric of Penelope, which is advanced in some years, was thrown overboard and start again with consequent losses in the capacities of government, public administration, and management, as well as the social cost that this represents and even in corruption indices that characterize the Mexican state not eventually be eliminated or at least alleviated. It is understood, to some extent, as a result of the political change that characterizes the country in the three tiers of government, however, even in the case of the same political party leading the country’s destiny from the presidential year, every six years’ settings do not wait regardless of job profiles and performance, which ends up being a practice that is identified by a characteristic of endemic of the political regime.

Corresponding author: Roberto Moreno Espinosa, Ph.D. in public administration, FCPyS-UNAM, career professor, Autonomous University of the State of Mexico, President of the International Academy of Political and Administrative Sciences and Future Studies, C.A.; research fields: theory of public administration, professionalization of public service, management and administration of local governments. E-mail: roberto.moreno@iapas.mx.

Oscar Mauricio Covarrubias Moreno, Ph.D. in political and social sciences, UNAM, secretary general and researcher, University of Business and Pedagogic Development, Vice President of the International Academy of Political and Administrative Sciences and Future Studies, C.A.; research fields: government coordination and transversality, educational management, and public policy. E-mail: mauri@unam.mx.

PROFESSIONALIZATION AND PUBLIC SERVICE CAREER IN MEXICO To explain the phenomenon briefly described, it is necessary to scrutinize the past, in order to highlight the