THE rule is always to err on the side of caution, especially with the lessons learned from the landslide in the City of Naga. So whether the crack observed in the slope of Sitio Sandayong in Barangay Buhisan in Cebu City is about to cause a landslide or not, the Cebu City Government should order an evacuation of those who live in the 30 houses below the slope.
The result of the investigation conducted by the Cebu City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office, the Cebu City Environment and Natural Resources Office and the Mines and Geosciences Bureau 7 was not yet released when this was written but even then those residents should be relocated. Investigations like this can’t be perfect despite the use of advanced equipment considering the human factor. Why risk the lives of people there?
The Cebu City Government can, for example, take the offer of Buhisan Barangay Captain Gremar Barete and his barangay council for a possible relocation site in Sitio Talisayan, which is about 6,000 square meters. The earlier the relocation plan is set into motion the better.
Which brings us to Cebu City Attorney Joseph Bernaldez’s response to a question on who should be held liable if residents who are advised to evacuate danger zones refuse to do so and a calamity happens there resulting in casualties. “If people are ordered to evacuate and they refuse to obey, then it’s their fault,” Bernaldez said.
That can be partly true but the goal of disaster risk reduction is not parrying the blame when disaster happens but ensuring that damage to lives and properties would be actually prevented when these tragedies occur. That is why government is given the mandate to force residents in danger zones to evacuate or to relocate them. In situations like this, the greater responsibility is for the government to do what is right.
If residents in danger sites refuse to be relocated, then government should force them to. The worst thing to happen is when disaster strikes there and all a government official could mutter is, “Sila man gud.”