President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr. urged Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) officials to brace for the expected arrival of more typhoons before the end of the year by improving its disaster response through better coordination with local government units (LGU).
During a situation briefing in Maguindanao last Tuesday, Marcos said local officials from BARMM should learn from their experience during the onslaught of Severe Tropical Storm “Paeng” (international name: Nalgae) during the weekend.
“PAGASA (Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration) said they are anticipating 4 more typhoons until the end of the year. So we have to deal with that already. Let us prepare for that already,” Marcos said.
Last Tuesday, PAGASA reported Tropical Storm Queenie already entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR).
BARMM is still reeling from the landslides and flash floods caused by Paeng, which affected over 500,000 people.
This prompted the BARMM government to declare a state of calamity in their region.
Joint operations
Marcos said the disaster response of the BARMM government could have been better if it held joint operations with the storm-affected LGUs.
“You have to have joint operations to maximize all of your assets because there is only so much [government resources] so it must be focused,” said Marcos addressing BARMM officials.
“The LGUs have a bit of an advantage over you on this since they have been doing it for so long, they already have procedures for it,” he added.
Marcos noted he is aware BARMM, which was just formed in 2019, is still in the process of developing its procedures, but he urged it to prioritize finalizing its disaster response protocols first .
“I know you are just drawing your procedures now but you can see why it is so important. That is why I am constantly hastening its creation so you will immediately know what to do [during disasters],” Marcos said.
“Next time, we hope to see more joint operations between the LGU and BARMM [government] otherwise our [response] will not be efficient,” he added.
Image credits: Philippine Coast Guard via AP