Salceda believes Taal response better with Department of Disaster Resilience

MANILA, Philippines — If the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR) is already in place, would the government’s response following Taal Volcano’s eruption have been better?

Yes, says Albay Congressman Joey Salceda.

Salceda, one of the main proponents of the bill proposing the creation of the DDR, underscored on Wednesday the need for the department especially following the series of disasters that recently hit the country.

“Oo mas maganda sana. Kasi ang OCD (Office of Civil Defense) may powers na dapat siguraduhin na may contingency plan at updated ito,” Salceda said at the Usaping Balita Media Forum in Quezon City.

“E halata mo naman ngayon, biglang nag-evacuate yung mga tao tapos hindi nila alam kung saan mga pumunta,” he added.

The recent Taal eruption and Typhoon Tisoy also showed the need for the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) and the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) to be placed under DDR.

“Let’s pass the DDR and put Phivolcs and Pagasa under the DDR,” Salceda said.

In his State of the Nation Address in 2019, President Rodrigo Duterte called on the Congress to speed up the creation of the DDR, saying that “natural disasters are poverty creators.”

Under the House’s version of the bill, DRR will be the primary agency “responsible, accountable, and liable for leading, managing, and organizing national efforts to prevent and reduce disaster risks; prepare for and respond to disasters; and recover, rehabilitate and build forward better after the destruction.”

Edited by MUF