President Marcos said Task Force Kanlaon would be created to deal with the long-term recovery of areas affected by the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon in Negros Island.

"Kailangan na sigurong magbuo ng Task Force Kanlaon for the long-term recovery (Maybe we need to form Task Force Kanlaon already for the long-term recovery)," Marcos told local officials during a situation briefing in Carlota City, Negros Occidental on Friday, Feb. 21.

In a media interview after the briefing, Marcos said the task force will be headed by the Office of the Civil Defense (OCD), and will include the mayors and the provincial government.

" Yes, they will head the task force," he said.

In forming the task force, the President stressed that long-term plans must now start, given that the activities of the volcano does not allow the government to have a timetable.

"Ang problema talaga natin, wala tayong timetable. Nakaabang lang tayo sa bulkan. Pero pwede natin, we can already get started doon sa mga long term (The real problem is that we do not have a timetable. We are just monitoring the volcano. But what we can do, we can already get started with the long term plans)," he said.

"We have to consolidate everything para kapag nangayari, sabihin natin, natapos na 'to. One year, two years, three years down the road, ito na naman, umusok na naman (so that we are ready when it happens again after this. Because one year, two years, three years down the road, we're here again, it's restless once more)," he further said.

He also welcomed the proposal of the local officials to identify a relocation site for families who will have to permanently leave their houses built within the danger zone.

He noted that while the idea could potentially address the problem in evacuation centers by relocating evacuees during such calamity, the local governments must ensure that the relocation sites will be totally out of the danger zone.

"Yung mga plano ng mga mayor na kukuha ng lupa, tapos diyan mag-rehabilitate, pero kailangan talaga 'yan parang ililipat mo yung buong bayan. Hindi lang basta basta, basta kung saan mo ilalagay, basta may lupa diyan, pwede na 'yan. Hindi 'yan pwede. Maraming dapat consideration na kasama sa planning (The plans of the mayors to acquire a land, and start the rehabilitation there, but it's as if moving the entire community. You should not just build anywhere, there are a lot to consider, including the planning)," he said.

If the government pushed through with this, he said, it must be guided by science. Thus, the plan must be coordinated with concerned national agencies.

"Wala pang gumawa nito, e (Nobody has done this before). So we have to be the ones to make the plan but again, it would be guided by science," he told the local executives.