By: Jennifer P. Rendon
“Are they not taking us seriously?”
Jose Roberto Nuñez, Office of Civil Defense 6 (OCD-6) regional director, could not hide his disappointment after majority of local government units (LGUs) still failed to submit assessment reports on the structural integrity of key infrastructures in their areas.
As of 5 p.m. of Nov. 5, 2019, which was the “extended” deadline for LGUs to submit their reports, only the towns of Mina in Iloilo and Patnongon in Antique province have complied.
In Negros Occidental, the areas that submitted the assessment reports were Calatrava, Candoni, EB Magalong, Hinigaran, La Castellana, Manapla, Moises Padilla, Valladolid, Bago City, Cadiz City, La Carlota, San Carlos, Silay City, Sipalay City, and Victorias City.
Tapaz in Capiz also submitted its report.
On the other hand, Guimaras province submitted a general report which did not indicate the assessment per municipality.
OCD-6 reports showed that Aklan and Capiz provinces and Iloilo and Bacolod cities have “ongoing consolidation.”
“But we would still wait until they could submit their assessments soonest,” he said.
Among the national government agencies (NGAs), five have submitted their report –Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Education (DepEd), National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB), and Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB).
On April 23, 2019, OCD-6 issued a memorandum requiring the 2 highly urbanized cities, 14 component cities, and 117 municipalities to submit assessment reports on the structure integrity of infrastructures in their areas.
“The purpose of which is to assess whether a structure is fit to withstand the service conditions safety and reliability. Baka may mga buildings or structures na masyado ng luma and need to be vacated,” Nuñez said.
But more than six months after the issuance of the memorandum, only two municipalities – Patnongon and Tapaz – complied.
Nuñez, who is also the chairman of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council 6 (RDRRMC-6), said Patnongon and Tapaz assessed school buildings in the absence of any mid-rise or high-rise structures in their locality.
They also noted that some school buildings must be relocated because these are located in landslide-prone areas.
Nuñe earlier surmised that other municipalities might have overlooked the memorandum.
But after the first strong earthquake that rocked Mindanao, Nuñez again issued a memorandum on October 22 reiterating the submission of their assessment report.
He said local chief executives (LCEs) could compel their municipal DRMMOs to do their task in doing the assessment report.
Nuñez again issued a memorandum to DRRM council chairpersons to submit their earthquake action plan in their area of responsibility; inventory of collapsed structures search and rescue (CSSR) equipment; and CSSR-trained personnel.
He cited the series of earthquakes in Mindanao on the “urgent need to establish preparedness measures and arrange response priorities ahead of time.”
“We need to ascertain how ready they are. They could also put in their report if they require more training so that we could arrange for it,” he said.
He also urged LGUs to invest in facilities and equipment for disasters.
