PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed displeasure over the “chill” approach of local government officials during calamities.
In a press conference, Palace Press Officer Undersecretary Claire Castro said local government executives should take calamity events seriously.
“Unang-una, sa Pangulo, hindi po niya gusto na ang mga liderato ay chill-chill lang. Dapat ang trabaho ay para sa taumbayan kasi umaasa po sila sa gobyerno, lalo na sa ganitong klaseng sitwasyon,” Castro said.
(First of all, the President does not want the leadership to be just taking it easy. The work should be for the people because they rely on the government, especially in this kind of situation.)
“Hindi puwedeng sabihin na chill-chill lang palagi. Dapat trabaho, hindi bakasyon,” she added.
(You can’t say it’s always just taking it easy. It should be work, not a vacation.)
Before Super Typhoon Uwan hit the province of Isabela, Governor Rodolfo Albano urged his constituents to “chill,” lashing out at the weather bureau for exaggerating forecasts that causes unnecessary panic and anxiety.
Albano assured, however, their preparedness ahead of the extreme weather condition during the time of the interview.
The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) earlier launched an investigation on several local government executives who were not in their respective areas when Typhoon Tino hit the country.
Tino, which battered the Visayas region, has left over 200 dead individuals, while Uwan’s onslaught in the southern and northern Luzon claimed 18 lives as of Tuesday, November 11.
However, amid the expected destructive effects of Uwan, Marcos expressed satisfaction over the implemented preemptive measures, which according to the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD), made a major difference especially in avoiding fatalities.
“Ang mga nangyayari po kasing kalamidad at sakuna, minsan hindi po natin maiiwasan at nangyayari ito na hindi natin ginugusto. So 'yung mga paghahanda po na ipinapakita ng mga agencies na nakakapagsagip ng mga tao mula sa peligro, nakikita po ng Pangulo ang magandang ginagawa ng ating mga ahensya,” Castro said.
(Disasters and calamities sometimes cannot be avoided and happen even when we don’t want them to. So the preparations shown by the agencies that save people from danger are seen by the President as the good work our agencies are doing.)
“Dahil po sa preemptive measures na ginagawa po ng ahensya po natin, sa utos na rin po ni Pangulong Marcos Jr., mas malaki po ang nagiging pagsagip natin sa ating mga kababayan,” she added.
(Because of the preemptive measures carried out by our agency, and under the orders of President Marcos Jr., our efforts to rescue our fellow citizens have become much greater.)
Earlier, the OCD said around 290,000 families or 898,000 individuals were preemptively evacuated before the onslaught of Typhoon Tino.
Days before Super Typhoon Uwan hit, 499,000 families or 1.7 million individuals heeded the call of local government units to preemptively evacuate. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)