MANILA – The Duterte administration’s version of the bill creating the Department of Disaster Resilience has been transmitted to Congress, Malacañang announced Tuesday.
“The bill is anchored on the government’s experience with previous disasters, among them super typhoon ‘Yolanda,’ and guided by President (Rodrigo) Duterte’s leadership principles,” Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque Jr. told a press briefing.
According to Roque, the new department, which will replace the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), will focus on natural hazards and disasters.
It is guided by a disaster resilience framework with three key result areas – disaster risk reduction, disaster preparedness and response, and recovery and building forward better – he said.
“The bill is a product of interagency teamwork, building on the salient points of the pending bills in Congress,” said Roque.
Once enacted into law, the measure will be a “significant step toward attaining safe, adaptive, and disaster-resilient communities,” reducing disaster risk and the impact of climate change, he stressed.
Earlier Sen. Francis Pangilinan called for immediate aid to communities affected by heavy rains over the past several weeks.
The cost of damage from recent typhoons reached P2.4 billion, according to the NDRRMC.
“Many towns remain submerged in floodwaters, like in Bulacan, even as the rains have stopped,” Pangilinan said Monday.
He urged concerned government agencies to pour their resources and efforts into the victims’ recovery.
“The Department of Social Welfare and Development and local government units should remain in the frontlines of aid distribution, such as food packs, health kits and clean water,” said Pangilinan.
“The Department of Health should help check the condition of the people, and avert the spread of diseases,” he said. “The Department of Public Works and Highways should clear the roads of obstructions and immediately fix damaged infrastructures.”
He added: “The Department of Agriculture and its attached agencies should attend to the needs of the farmers who have lost their crops. [They] should help farmers gain access to free seedlings, loans and other assistance.”
Moreover Pangilinan asked the Department of Budget and Management to tap into President Rodrigo Duterte’s contingency fund and the budget of the departments to address the crises./PN
