LAST Thursday morning, tragedy struck Naga City as a massive landslide wiped out Sitio Sindulan. Before anything else, I couldn’t go anywhere without first extending my sympathies and condolences to the families affected. May they be guided by our Lord towards a quick recovery.
I want to share my opinion regarding the tragedy, and whether a finger should be directed at anybody. Also, being a Grade 10 student from St. Benedict Childhood Education Centre, I would like to speak on behalf of my peers.
So, must anyone be blamed?
Shortly following the landslide, retired judge Meinrado Paredes said that the precautionary measures taken by the Mines and Geoscience Bureau were “not enough.” He claimed that its officials could be charged with “damages and criminal negligence.” Is he correct? Is the agency really deserving of this hot seat?
Without a shadow of a doubt, it seems quite clear to me that the agency is indeed deserving of the backlash it continues to receive until today. Just like any institution, it has its own objectives by which it should function:
Firstly, it is stated on its website that its main responsibility is to “coordinate and maintain commitments on the development, management, and conservation of the country’s mineral resources.” Secondly, its responsibilities under the law are found under Sections 68 and 69 of Republic Act 7942, which deal with the Report of Accidents and Environmental Protection in relation to mining.
Its objectives were made very clear, especially in the aforementioned law. Yet, it failed to mitigate the harmful effects of such calamity when it mattered the most—considering the fact that the site is landslide-prone.
Prior to the landslide, the MGB had previously issued a “technical assessment” on the area, which ruled that the cracks in the Naga quarry sites “are not critical” and “do not pose an imminent danger to the neighboring community.” However, after everything that has occurred, we now know better—and the truth is tremendously absurd. This inaccurate report would be on the level of the weather bureau Pagasa declaring typhoon Yolanda as just a regular tropical depression.
Moreover, if you are a varsity basketball player with a Kobe Bryant or Ray Allen label in pressure situations; and with seconds remaining, you decide to pass to a wide-open teammate whose breathing room you hope would increase his chance of making the shot; and he misses the shot by lightyears, the pain is unfathomable. To all the Kobes or Ray Allens of the different varsity teams reading this right now, I’m telling you, the struggle is real...
DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu wasted no time in relieving the MGB 7’s top officials and conducting a consequent investigation.
At this point, it is very difficult to disagree with Paredes and Cimatu. Allow me to quote a line from American heist film Ocean’s Eleven. MGB 7, you had one job!!! -- Oscar Tan III, Grade 10 Student