DEFENSE Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr yesterday said disaster risk reduction and management councils (DRRMCs) at the provincial, city, municipal and barangay levels should take the leading in responding to the effects of El Niño.
“As in any disaster or calamity, the provincial, city, municipal and barangay-level DRRMCs should take the lead and get involved,” said Teodoro, who is the chairman of the Task Force El Niño and the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC).
Teoodoro said DRRMCs, which are chaired by local chief executives, are “in the best position to determine the needs of their communities during crisis and emergencies.”
“Effectively addressing the effects of El Niño across the country surely requires all hands on deck,” he said.
Teodoro said the task force will streamline the national government response to the El Niño weather phenomenon, noting that President Marcos Jr. wants to focus on “systematic, holistic, and results-driven interventions.”
“We should all cooperate and coordinate as we deal with the effects of and concerns on El Niño. We do not need a new structure. What we need is to breathe fresh energy and a new lease on life on the existing networks and links that we have all access to,” said Teodoro.
At the regional and local government levels, Teodoro said they can “reignite old connections of collaboration.”
“We have done this in handling past disasters and calamities. The provincial DRRMCs and city DRRMCs should restart reconnecting,” he said as he assured the President that the task force and local DRRMCs are actively working to mitigate the impact of the dry spell.
DAMAGE TO AGRI
The NDRRMC said the cost of damage to agriculture due to El Niño has reached P254.89 million in three regions as of the weekend, which is more than double compared to the P112.19 million in agricultural damage reported last week.
In a report, the NDRRMC said Western Visayas – specifically the provinces of Iloilo, Negros Occidental and Antique — incurred most of the damage, with P251.43 million.
Calabarzon, specifically Quezon, and Zamboanga Peninsula, particularly Zamboanga del Norte, registered agricultural damage worth P2.75 million and P.71 million, respectively.
The NDRRMC also said El Niño has affected 5,466.26 hectares of crops.
Also, it said 7,094 farmers and fisherfolks have also been affected by the weather phenomenon, which increases the likelihood of below-normal rainfall conditions that may lead to dry spells and droughts.
Last week, the NDRRMC said 41 areas were already badly hit by the El Niño based on the assessment of the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, and Astronomical Service Administration (PAGASA).
Fourteen of these are facing drought, which are Apayao, Benguet, Cagayan, Cavite, Ifugao, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Kalinga, La Union, Mountain Province, Nueva Ecija, Nueva Vizcaya, Palawan, and Pangasinan.
On the other hand, 10 areas are experiencing dry spell — Abra, Aurora, Bataan, Isabela, Metro Manila, Occidental Mindoro, Quirino, Rizal, Zambales, and Negros Occidental.
Seventeen areas are facing dry spell, namely Batangas, Laguna, Masbate, Oriental Mindoro, Antique, Biliran, Capiz, Cebu, Eastern Samar, Guimaras, Iloilo, Leyte, Negros Oriental, Samar, Lanao del Norte, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi.
