Tuesday, October 03, 2006 Palace, senator cite need for better storm preparations
* Arroyo dissatisfied with progress of rehabilitation
* 141 deaths in landslide caused by typhoon recorded in Region 4 alone
EXECUTIVE Secretary Eduardo Ermita on Monday said authorities should learn their lessons from the aftermath of Typhoon Milenyo as the country faces another storm following the entry of tropical disturbance Neneng in the Philippine area of responsibility.
"We haven't recovered from Milenyo," said Ermita in an ambush interview after the conferment of awards to billiard champions Efren "Bata" Reyes and Francisco "Django" Bustamante in Malacañang.
He said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo's directive was to "hasten the returning to normalization because merong dadating (another storm is coming) in 48 to 72 hours. We were told it would enter the Philippine area of responsibility Monday-Tuesday."
Arroyo said authorities are now working round the clock to speed up the rehabilitation of the damaged properties as well as immediately restore power and communication in affected areas.
She ordered Defense secretary and National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) chairman Avelino Cruz Jr. to come up with more "multi-level modules for disaster preparedness" in anticipation of the next typhoon.
Arroyo also directed the NDCC to coordinate closely the Manila Electric Company (Meralco), the National Transmission Corporation (Transco), the National Power Corporation (Napocor) and the local electric cooperatives to speed up the return of electricity to affected areas.
She is also waiting for the proposed issuance on the regulation of billboards which Cruz is crafting. She said she would make it an executive order instead of an administrative order as earlier planned.
Asked if she was satisfied with the phase of the rehabilitation work, Arroyo said "of course we want it all to be faster but, that's why we want it to be round the clock, round the clock, that we work round the clock."
The President on Monday afternoon visited General Trias in Cavite to meet with the Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) and personally assess the conditions of the affected residents.
Arroyo, accompanied by Cavite Governor Macario Maliksi and Office of the Civil Defense administrator Gene Rabonza, inspected the San Francisco Sunny Brookes Subdivision where some 24 houses were damaged after an old dam near the village was shattered.
A resident, hoisting a banner, said "Welcome President Arroyo/No power, no water/For 5 days."
The President, during the RDCC meeting in Cavite, ordered the Department of Agriculture (DA) to ensure that there would be ample food following the P800 million agricultural damages incurred in the Calabarzon region alone. Damage to infrastructure in the region was pegged at P104 million.
The DA regional office said at least 21,000 hectares of agricultural land in the region was damaged costing at least P139 million in terms of vegetables and P661 million in banana products. Region IV supplies about 20 to 25 percent of vegetables in Metro Manila.
The regional office of the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) said deaths have reached 141 - 28 in Cavite, 56 in Laguna, six in Batangas, four in Rizal, 47 in Quezon - while 72 others are reported missing some of them from the landslide in San Francisco in Laguna. At least three bodies had been recovered from the landslide but they have yet to be identified.
The OCD also said at least 210 families or a million persons affected while the regional social welfare and development office said they are assisting at least 489,000 persons in 189 evacuation centers.
The social welfare office also released at least P2 million to assist the victims, some of which coming from the pork barrel of the congressmen from the affected districts.
Arroyo visited on Friday the residents of Navotas and Manila and to extend assistance and condole with relatives of those who perished during the typhoon.
She also flew to Sorsogon last Saturday to asses the conditions and ordered the release of P70 million for the rehabilitation of school buildings, the Andaya Highway and return of power in the region.
The President said there are still ample funds to assist the victims and ensured the continued repairs and rehabilitation as only 30 percent of the money released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to the concerned agencies had been used up. She said there was a release of at least P500 million per agency involved in the operations.
Ermita said Arroyo is monitoring daily the progress of the rehabilitation "because GMA (Arroyo) is concerned about the welfare of the citizens, how to alleviate the sufferings of those affected by the typhoon."
He said they have to prioritize Metro Manila as it is the center of commercial centers and communication among others.
Ermita added that they would not hasten to crack the whip on agencies moving at a snail phase. "It follows that's why we are constantly watching out for every department to do their thing, monitoring of the flow of food, prices, clearing operations," Ermita said.
Ermita said he was surprised to hear about the shattered windows at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Centennial Terminal due to the typhoon and it should serve as a wake-up call to authorities, including those repairing and completing the Naia 3.
He said typhoons are unpredictable and those involved in the Naia 3 should "take a special look" at the incident at Naia 2 and ensure that it would not be repeated in the new terminal lest it be an embarrassment to the Philippines.
Malacañang also ordered the police and local government units to immediately arrest those who would be caught stealing power lines and cables as it affects the vast majority. He said harsher penalties should be imposed on the offenders.
Reports said at least 100 meters of power lines in Cavite were stolen, further delaying the restoration of power in the province and nearby areas.
Arroyo said she had already ordered the police and the military to work with the barangay tanods in going after thieves and preventing similar lootings in other areas.
She said when she visited Navotas, she was informed of such practice and she was glad that the police were there to prevent it form further happening.
"The PNP, the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) and the barangay tanods have to be the ones to work together to secure the wires and everything else that have fallen against looting. In other cities all over the world, that's always one of the dangers. The danger of looting but so far we don't have major reports about that," she said.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan called for greater preparedness against disasters to avoid extensive damage to lives, livelihoods, and property as what recently happened after typhoon Milenyo struck Metro Manila last week.
"I am apprehensive that we will be caught unprepared for the onslaught of another typhoon that is already on its way to Manila," Pangilinan said.
Pangilinan also said while typhoon Neneng, although of lesser intensity than Milenyo, may cause worse damage to lives and livelihoods if preparations are lacking.
"Similar to Hurricane Katrina's carnage and previously in the Philippines typhoon Rosing's destruction, Metro Manila, Albay, Sorsogon, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal suffered the most from typhoon Milenyo's wrath," he added.
Pangilinan lauded the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and the NCDD, who he said tried their very best to offset the damage.
"There's really no point in pointing fingers and laying blame on what was not done and what is not being done to alleviate the situation," he said.
Pangilinan urged more efforts at disaster preparedness with the typhoon season still here.
"It would serve the public's interest for Meralco and Transco to hasten its efforts in restoring normalcy and fixing the remaining 570 of the 6000 broken electric poles. NDCC and DSWD (Department of Public Works and Highways) should also be ready to provide relief efforts to the elderly, women and children especially," Pangilinan said.
Pangilinan also said that Meralco and TransCo will need to rehabilitate its power transmission systems to ensure that a repeat of the blackout will not happen again or at the least minimized.
"The lack of electricity hampered relief efforts and communication efforts to reach the greatest number of victims," he said. (JMR/CPB/Sunnex)
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