Duterte jokes about naming typhoons after ‘yellows’

MANILA, Philippines — In the middle of his meeting with officials concerning the aftermath of Typhoon Rolly, President Rodrigo Duterte joked about naming typhoons after “yellows.”

“I have a question for you. Who determines what name the typhoon would bear? Sino tiga-bigay ng appellation ng bagyo?” Duterte asked Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (Pagasa) administrator Vicente Malano.

The state weather bureau official explained it has four sets of names from A to Z that are used every four years.

Pagasa gives local names to tropical cyclones once they enter or form inside the Philippine Area of Responsibility.

“If I may add something, puwede nito idagdag ang pangalan ni [Transportation Secretary] Arturo [Tugade] pati ni [Public Works Secretary] Mark [Villar]. Tapos na si [Social Welfare and Development Secretary] Rolly [Bautista],” he said, in jest.

(If I may add something, maybe we can add the names of Arturo and Mark since Rolly is already done.)

“Doon ka magkuha sa dilaw, marami doon,” he added.

(You can get names from the yellows, they have many.)

Duterte met with key government officials on Monday to tackle efforts to rebuild areas devastated by Rolly.

JPV