Daniel Mello Reporter Agência Brasil
São Paulo – The São Paulo city legislative assembly (“Camera Municipal”) and a non-governmental organization, “Rede Nossa São Paulo,” led a public consultation, called “You in the Legislature” (“Você no Parlimento”), to find out what the population considered the city’s priorities. A total of 33,400 people were interviewed and the number one problem cited, by 77.41% of those interviewed, was public transportation. And the message was that the government should focus more on collective transportation rather than individual transportation (that is, buses, trains and subways as opposed to cars). In the poll, 58.95% called for lower prices for buses, trains and the subway.
The coordinator-general of Rede Nossa São Paulo, Oded Grajew, pointed out that the city invested a lot in tunnels, avenues and ring highways around the city (“vias marginais”) and very little in public transportation. There is a clear incoherence between what the public wants and where the money goes,” he said.
Also scoring high in the public consultation was a demand for more efficient treatment of urban waste and improvements in public health services. Both items had similar scores: 75.30% of those interviewed said the disposal of solid waste should be another priority. While 75.24% wanted a more rapid response from the public health system, with emphasis on faster access to doctors and exams for the citizen.
According to the president of the Câmera, José Police Neto, the results were not a surprise. But it will help convert popular projects into benefits for the population.
Oded Grajew, of Rede Nossa São Paulo, says his organization will compare the city budget for next year with the demands in the consultation. He said that in general the government has not met the expectations of society. “There is a great deal of dissatisfaction concerning the items the population thinks should be priorities,” he declared.
Allen Bennett – translator/editor The News in English
Link - Prioridade para o transporte público é principal demanda do paulistano, aponta consulta pública
