Some lessons learned

As more assistance is being poured in for earthquake survivors of Bohol and Cebu, those who bore the brunt of the calamity have a lot to ponder on.

One of the valuable lessons came from architect Felino “Jun” Palafox, president of the Philippine Institute of Environment Planners. He bewailed anew obsolete building codes that have resulted in old structures like churches, public markets and government buildings being struck down like a house of cards.

“Some developers want to reach the sky but they don’t know how to meet the ground,” he said in ANC’s “Future Perfect.” Palafox was an independent expert during the 2009 devastation caused by typhoon Ondoy.

He emphasized the need to draf a disaster preparation map in tandem with a development plan for a city, town or province in order to mitigate the effect of calamites like floods and earthquakes.

Palafox said “adaptive architecture” integrates proper planning, design and building structures according to prevailing conditions of the environment. That includes consulting with geologists to see if there are nearby fault lines.

Palafox pointed to politics and corruption as bottom line problems.

“When you have politicians dictating how a city would be developed, you see what happens…the uglification of a city, with so many areas (robbed of their natural beauty),” he said.

And no matter how much money is being poured into building schools and offices, if funds for projects go to the pockets of corrupt officials, their lackeys and business contacts – Janet Lim Napoles being the flavor of the month—then Filipinos may as well be flushing their taxes and their lives down the toilet, to paraphrase Palafox.

His message stirs a familiar, timely refrain for Boholanos and Cebuanos who are still shaken by the Oct. 15 earthquake and its continuing tremors.

It’s a potent reminder to local and national officials who should have more integrity in the business of governance because they have the country’s resources at their fingers.

Instead it falls on the private sector to make a difference. In fact, it is private citizens and civil society taking the lead in mounting donation drives and relief work in helping Boholanos.

The Cebu city and provincial government should take the lead in reviewing land use plans and zoning ordinances, to make sure that any repeat of Nature’s fury would not cause more havoc in built-up areas, than it already has.