Palace: No one will be spared in the probe on `Pablo’ death toll

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—A Malacañang Palace aide said Saturday no one will be spared in the investigation ordered by President Aquino Friday into the high death toll and extensive damage suffered by residents of seven regions in Mindanao and the Visayas ravaged by Typhoon Pablo.

“Whoever is accountable will not be spared. This is no laughing matter. We should not inject politics into these sort of discussions where we talk about people’s lives,” said deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte in a radio interview.

“The President has indeed ordered the probe, but we don’t want to be accused of favoring a particular person or persecuting (others)—as their favorite term would be—but we will wait for the results,” she said.

The President, who appeared stunned by the severity of the humanitarian crisis wrought by Pablo, briefed reporters in Davao City on Friday.

Asking a series of pointed questions, he said: “If the planning (for the municipal zoning) was wrong, why was it so? Was there any shortcoming? Can we come up with a better process so that people will understand (hazard) maps like this? The information should be correlated with what Pagasa was saying on the (projected) amount of rainfall.”

He said there was a need to elevate the “expertise” of officials involved in disaster response and preparedness—from accurate information gathering to adequate facilities and equipment to commensurate response.

“Satisfied with the search and rescue? I want a more centralized effort. It’s as if we are relying primarily now on the reports of those who couldn’t find their loved ones,” said Mr. Aquino.

Mr. Aquino, who ordered a team from the Department of Interior and Local Government, Department of Justice, and Department of Environment and Natural Resources to conduct the investigation, said he wanted “preemptive operations” in dealing with a coming storm.

“The endpoint is to minimize, if not eliminate the casualties, during situations like this. What’s the reality? The reality is we are being visited by, on average, about 20 typhoons a year. Every typhoon, can Filipinos to just take care of themselves?” he said.

“I’d like to get to the point that, perhaps, the Filipinos can be given timely information, that he can seek refuge so that he can be out of harm’s way, and to lessen, if not eventually eradicate, loss of lives in natural disaster like this.”

He admitted that fate sometimes intervened.

“But, on top of this, perhaps, we have been endowed by God with free will and open mind to not just accept the wrath of nature. We can be (prepared), isn’t that so? That’s why our council is called ‘Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council,’” he added.