Palace: Food, not bullets, for victims

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda: Food. FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The victims of Supertyphoon “Yolanda” need food, not bullets.

This was Malacañang’s reaction to suggestions that President Aquino declare a state of emergency or even martial law, particularly in the areas devastated by Yolanda.

Presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda said on Tuesday there was no need to impose martial law in the aftermath of Yolanda, echoing Justice Secretary Leila de Lima who on Monday said an iron fist was not needed but “a humanitarian attitude and people the victims can talk to, or at least people they can look to for reassurance that aid is coming.”

Aquino instead declared a state of national calamity on Monday night.

Explaining the rationale for the declaration of a state of national calamity, Lacierda said it was based on Republic Act No. 10121, otherwise known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010.

“The state of national calamity would provide us with latitude to rescue, (provide) relief and rehabilitation, (and help in the) recovery,” he said in a Palace briefing Tuesday.

Before that, De Lima had said that a declaration of both a state of emergency and a state of calamity was a strong option to quell the looting in Tacloban City.

She said that declaring martial law was not an option since under the Constitution, martial law may only be declared in cases of invasion or rebellion.

Aquino visited Tacloban City on Sunday to see for himself the situation on the ground.

In a televised address to the nation Monday night, he said he was “declaring a state of national calamity to accelerate the efforts of the government to save, to render aid and to rehabilitate the provinces that were ravaged by Yolanda.”

According to Proclamation No. 682, the state of national calamity will remain in force until lifted by the President.

Aquino said the declaration was “important so that we can ensure control over the prices of basic commodities and services that our countrymen will need, to avoid overpricing and hoarding of vital products.”

He also approved an additional P1.1 billion for the Quick Response Fund (QRF) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of Public Works and Highways.

The QRF will allow the two departments, which are at the forefront of government relief and rehabilitation efforts, to “quickly provide the necessary support for the recovery of our countrymen who were the victims of this typhoon,” said the President.

The declaration empowers Aquino to pool savings and all other unspent government funds and channel these to aid for the typhoon victims, as well as set in motion steps to bring back to normalcy the areas devastated by Yolanda.

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