Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad, Executive Director of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), maintained Friday, Dec. 31, that the Council was quick to respond to the needs of Filipinos who were affected by Typhoon “Odette.”
This, as he shielded the Council from criticisms that the government was “too slow” in addressing the needs of typhoon victims, particularly in the distribution of relief goods.
“Sa ating nakikita hindi naman nahuhuli ang NDRRMC sa pagsagawa ng aksyon. Even before the conduct of a full Council meeting ay gumalaw na ang iba’t-ibang ahensya ng gobyerno, mga members ng NDRRMC para tulungan ang ating mga (Based from what we have seen, the NDRRMC was not late in our actions. Even before the conduct of a full Council meeting, different government agencies that are members of the NDRRMC already acted on their own to help the LGUs),” he said in a press briefing on New Year’s Eve.
Jalad said that the preparations for Typhoon “Odette” started as early as December 14 when it entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility as a low pressure area.
He said a pre-disaster risk assessment (PDRA) was conducted to determine what areas will be hardest hit so they can alert the regional DRRM units and preposition relief goods, and search and rescue personnel.
On Dec. 17, a day after Odette slammed into Mindanao and Visayas, the NDRRMC held its first full Council meeting to determine initial reports on damages and the mobilization of different response clusters.
After the initial salvo of relief operations, the NDRRMC held another meeting on Dec. 20 when it submitted a recommendation to President Duterte declaring a state of calamity in six of the most affected regions.
The recommendation was approved on Dec. 21.
“At kahit December 21 nakapagapprove ng declaration of state of calamity ang ating Pangulo, gumalaw na kaagad ang iba’t ibang ahensya – local, regional, at national level – so hindi tayo natatali sa kawalan ng declaration of state of calamity sa ating paggalaw (And even if it was only on Dec. 21 that the declaration of state of calamity was approved by the President, different government agencies in the local, regional, and national levels immediately acted, so we are not bound to the absence of the declaration of the state of calamity),” Jalad explained.
“Mabilis nating ipinadala ang tulong na kailangang dalhin sa mga naapektuhang lugar. Maaga tayong naghanda, kaagad tayong gumalaw, at itutuloy natin ang ating pagresponde (We immediately sent the relief assistance to the most affected areas. We prepared early, we acted accordingly, and we will continue our response operations),” he added.
In connection with this, a new hope for the New Year awaits victims of Typhoon Odette as the NDRRMC bared it has started works to establish a comprehensive recovery and rehabilitation plan for them.
Jalad said that as relief operations started winding down in the affected areas, the Council shifts its attention to the conduct of post-disaster needs assessment (PDNA) which will be the basis for the creation of a recovery and rehabilitation plan to be led by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) and the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).
“Through the conduct of the PDNA, we will be able to validate all the reports on damages and formulate a comprehensive recovery and rehabilitation plan. Whatever damages, losses, or needs that will be identified in the PDNA will serve as the basis for the programs, activities, and projects in our comprehensive recovery and rehabilitation plan in connection with Typhoon Odette,” Jalad said.
“Muli, uulitin ko ang commitment ng gobyerno, ng NDRRMC, at tauhan ng OCD: patuloy na serbisyo ang ibibigay natin sa ating mga kabaayan upang iaddress itong epekto ni Typhoon Odette hanggang sa makabangon ang ating mga kababayan na naapektuhan (Again, I reiterate the commitment of the government, the NDRRMC, and the personnel of the OCD: we will continue serving the affected people to address the effects of Typhoon Odette until they can finally recover),” the NDRRMC Chief promised.
Typhoon Odette affected a total of 4,457,846 individuals (1,139,148 families) across 38 provinces in 11 regions.
A total of 500,626persons were displaced by the typhoon while 405 died, 82 were still missing, and 1,147 were injured.