Palace: Aquino happy, but never satisfied, with preparations for Ruby

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte. INQUIRER file photo.

MANILA, Philippines – Known for being meticulous when it comes to details, President Benigno Aquino III is never satisfied with government performance but he is at least happy with the outcome of the preparations for Typhoon Ruby (international name: Hagupit), Malacañang said Saturday.

“Maganda naman po ang naging pagtingin ng ating Pangulo doon sa ating mga naging preparasyon at sa ating mga naging kilos,” Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Abigail Valte said over Radyo ng Bayan.

(The President seemed happy with the preparations and actions of the government.)

“Ngunit ang sinasabi naman ho nga ng Pangulo is that ‘I’m never satisfied.’ So iniisip po niya, hahanapan pa po natin ng paraan or further ways to improve our actions on the ground,” she added.

(But what the President always says is that ‘I’m never satisfied.’ So he is thinking that there is still a need to find other ways to improve our actions on the ground.)

Valte said they were relieved that the number of people killed due to the effects of the typhoon was relatively low.

As of Saturday, the death toll for Ruby was at 18, according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

Ruby was initially described to be as strong as typhoon Pablo, which left thousands of people dead in Mindanao in 2012. However, as it made landfall, Ruby weakened and was eventually downgraded to a tropical depression.

Valte said there are a lot of lessons learned from past experiences that were applied during the preparations for Ruby.

“Ngayon ho, nagkakaroon na tayo ng mga post-mortem assessment at tinitingnan po ng mga ahensya…What other positives we can refine to be able to deliver services to the ground at the quickest possible time,” she added.

(Right now, we are having a post-mortem assessment and the agencies are looking at… What other positives we can refine to be able to deliver services to the ground at the quickest possible time.)

“We’re hoping that our recent experience with Typhoon Ruby…tend to show that we are starting on evolving into or developing and imbibing the culture of preparedness given the geographic placement of our country,” Valte said.

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