PROTECTING Filipinos from disasters should be among the President’s highest priorities in tomorrow’s State of the Nation Address because recent storms and the growing threat of a strong El Niño have once again exposed the country’s vulnerability to natural calamities, a former lawmaker who championed disaster resilience reforms in Congress said on Sunday.
Former 1Tahanan Party-list Representative Nathan Oducado said disaster preparedness deserves the same level of attention as the economy, education, and peace and order, especially given that anomalous projects are justified as disaster resilience initiatives.
“Every peso actually spent on disaster preparedness saves lives, protects livelihoods, and reduces the cost of rebuilding after calamities,” Oducado reminded the President. “The flood control scandal exposed last year is not just embarrassing because of corruption, but because the need for such infrastructure is real.”
His call comes as Severe Tropical Storm Kiyapo drenched Northern Luzon, forced evacuations in several provinces, and left many communities dealing with flooding even as experts warned that the rainfall was still not enough to ease the worsening dry conditions brought by the developing El Niño, which PAGASA expects to intensify in the coming months.
“The same country that is flooded today could suffer drought tomorrow, which is why government must prepare for every hazard instead of reacting one disaster at a time,” Oducado said.
During his term in Congress, Oducado authored House Bill No. 5764, which sought to establish a Department of Disaster and Emergency Management to unify disaster prevention, preparedness, response, recovery, and rehabilitation under one permanent department capable of responding faster and planning better before disasters strike.
«”When lives are on the line, there should be no confusion over who is in charge because every minute matters during an emergency,” Oducado stressed.
Oducado also authored House Bill No. 6967, which proposed creating an Independent Commission on Infrastructure Integrity and Disaster Resilience to strengthen oversight of public infrastructure, investigate structural failures, and ensure that roads, bridges, schools, hospitals, and evacuation centers are built to withstand stronger typhoons, earthquakes, floods, and other natural hazards.
“Climate change is making disasters more frequent and more destructive, so our infrastructure and our institutions must become stronger than the threats we face,” Oducado added.
Oducado said the approaching El Niño also threatens food production, water supply, and electricity generation, making long-term disaster resilience and climate adaptation essential parts of the country’s economic agenda rather than separate concerns.
“I hope the President’s SONA will present a clear roadmap for disaster resilience because every Filipino deserves a government that prepares before disasters happen instead of simply responding after lives have already been lost,” Oducado concluded.
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