8/13/2019 A commentary about what should be the government's next step of action for the effects of typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines

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Yolanda ,LGUs and Other Issues

There have been series of events that had happenedafter the very tragic and devastating phenomenon ofYolanda affecting the Philippines last November 8,2013. Yolanda, also called Haiyan, the typhoon withits highest velocity that reached more than 185kilometers per hour left great destruction not just tophysical infrastructures but also to the lives andemotional security of the people. The typhoon causedmajor distraught to many places in Eastern Visayasparticularly Tacloban , Leyte, Samar, Cebu andBohol.

In President Benigno Aquino IIIs interview onNovember 18, 2013 he said that local governmentunits (LGUs) have a great responsibility over whathappens to these areas. On the interview, PNoy saidthat the LGUs have misjudged on handling the rightpreparation matters that had caused great destructionto various places in Eastern Visayas. PNoymentioned that high casualities could have beenprevented only if the LGU on the affected areas hastaken enough procedures to inform the people.

The destruction that Yolanda did were sooverwhelming that it has affected 11.26 millionpersons or 2. 38 families from Calabarzon, Bicol ,Western Visayas, Central Visayas, Eastern Visayas,Northern Mindanao, Davao and Caraga regions. Ithas also damaged more than 1.21 million houseswhere almost P34.5 billion of properties from physicalinfrastructures and agricultural properties. Aside fromthese thousands of survivors are left in despair withno available flights for their assistance and they werein hunger and in deep desperation of having noshelter but with the cadavers, and were in greatdespair for the loss of loved ones. Aside from this, itis also very noticeable that the Philippine governmenthas not been able to respond immediately and

efficiently to the victims. It already took a couple ofdays before first few supplies are delivered to someareas on the affected region. The plead of thesurvivors for immediate help were also reported assome of them were already dying from hunger andneed of medication.

Because of this events, we could clearly see the trendthat there really has been a slow response from theour countrys government. The need for a moreeffective and systematic strategy is something ourcountry really need to focus on in dealing with thetyphoons aftermath. There must be a clear line ofcommand of where to bring the aids, and where to goto gather it in specific centers for a more centralizedand efficient action. As I noticed, the country hadstruggled because have been no clear instructionsfrom our government on how to respond during thesesituations. Everyone was waiting how to respond

during these situations. People from the Philippinestried to do their part in helping the country, but thelack of a centralized plan and an immediate andconcrete plan to action made this unplannedresponse, to be less in its effect and in its efficiency.The effectiveness of many of our countrys resourcesspecially human resources, the fuel use intransporting the aids and much time could have beensaved and used wisely.

Like Japan, it would be better if the governmentalready have a scheme for these situations that wouldmake our efforts more organized and more effective.

Sen. Binay was known to urged and to attest for thegovernments slow response after typhoon Yolandaleft the country,

We have all seen the destruction that SuperTyphoon Yolanda has caused our country. Billionsworth of property and livelihood were destroyed,

many lives were lost and our governments responsewas found inadequate, Binay said.

It would be wise if the government would prepareconcrete steps for our country to thrive during theseunfortunate events.

We dont want to point fingers and have a witch huntof who is blame for the delayed action. We want toknow what needs to be done to improve our system ofdisaster response, devise contingencies in suchemergencies and we want to know how we canimplement government funding to immediatelyprovide resources when the people need it, Binaysaid.

In this times, it is not wise to point fingers on who toblame for poor preparation towards the typhoon butrather we should be seeking ways on how to improveour action towards these phenomenon. Thegovernment should be preparing and planning nowthe line of command and the clear steps on what todo and where to go for the next similar occurrence.

The government should have a clear procedures forevents like this, from preparation, to recovery andrehabilitation. When we really cannot stop devastatingtyphoons in the Philippines, where it is undeniablethat it is indeed a country without a year of no strongstorms, I believe it would be beneficial if the peopleand most especially the government would make wisesteps to do during these phenomenon.

And for these times that the country is still on theprocess of recovery, I plead that the governmentshould have bold and fully planned steps towardsrehabilitation and our standing up again as a nation.

8/13/2019 A commentary about what should be the government's next step of action for the effects of typhoon Yolanda in the Philippines

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