Ochoa bares inroads in Aquino administration’s
disaster monitoring systems, preparedness
The government is close to completing the
integrated flood warning system (IFEWS) covering 18 leading river systems
around the country and the installation of some 1,000 automated weather sensors
along rivers and watersheds that will give local government units and
communities at least a six-hour warning for impending floods, Executive
Secretary Paquito N. Ochoa Jr. said on Friday.
Speaking before participants of “Iba na ang
Panahon: Science for Safer Communities-Early Warning, Early Action” gathering,
Ochoa noted the inroads the administration made in the field of disaster risk
reduction and management (DRRM) through the Department of Science and
Technology (DOST) in response to President Benigno Aquino III’s policy to tap
science-based tools to reduce the impacts of calamities in the country.
The DOST, in partnership with the Department of
the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and the Office of the Civil Defense
(OCD), has started the information, education and communication campaign in the
National Capital Region as part of efforts to enhance the capacity and ability
of local government units and disaster managers in disaster risk reduction and
mitigation in the face of the increasing occurrence of mega disasters,
including Super Typhoon Yolanda last year.
According to Ochoa, the public can expect the
completion of IFEWS – a direct result of DOST’s initiative under PAGASA,
Project Noah and DREAM – in two years. “This is quite a feat considering that
in the past 40 years only five river systems had a flood warning system in
place. What has not been done in the past 40 years, we will complete in just
two years.”
The completion of IFEWS is crucial in providing
DRRM officers, LGUs and communities the ample time to prepare and a graphical
understanding of the full extent of the floods that may come their way, he
said.
Additionally, Ochoa said the DOST has
established its Intelligent Operations Center (IOC) that will provide a
dramatic lift in government’s national capability in making forecasts more
predictive and relevant in terms of predicting impacts on communities. Through
the IOC, a storm’s path can be projected and laid over thematic maps containing
vital information that can give a view of the potential damage a storm would
bring to affected areas.
“This will be helpful in arriving at a forward
estimate of how much relief goods need to be prepositioned or even how many GI
sheets need to be in stock even before a storm arrives,” Ochoa said.
The Executive Secretary also noted the
establishment of the Philippine National Earthquake and Tsunami Monitoring and
Communication System by the Philippine Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS)
which is deemed to serve as an early warning protocol using state-of-the-art
equipment.
To date, PHIVOLCS has 69 seismic network
covering the entire country, which will be increased to 85 seismic network by
2016 and to be supported by smart sensors for earthquake monitoring.
Under the tsunami early warning system are the
tsunami scenario database, tsunami hazard mapping for Metro Manila, Bolinao
Tsunami Detection, Lingayen Warning System, Corregidor Tidal Gauge Station and
the sea-level detection sensors.
“We continue to find better solutions for an
effective disaster risk reduction management system. To be successful in our
efforts to mitigate disasters, we must remain steadfast and proactive by
bringing down science-based knowledge products to the communities at risk,”
Ochoa said.
At this point, Ochoa challenged LGU executives
and local DRRM officers to continue to play their crucial roles in times
disaster and crisis.
“Now, the challenge rests on our shoulders. We
now have all these science-based tools and technologies. But these are all
nothing if we do not use them,” he said. “Remember that you perform dual
responsibilities: that you are the first receiver of information and you are
also the first responder in times of crisis.”
NEDA board approves nine major projects
The Aquino administration has approved nine
major projects in infrastructure, transportation, water supply, and health care
worth P62.3 billion, during a marathon meeting in Malacanang on Thursday.
In a statement issued on Friday, Presidential
Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. said the
projects were approved by the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA)
Board on Thursday during their meeting that began at 1 p.m. and ended at almost
midnight. The NEDA Board is chaired by President Benigno S. Aquino III.
Approved were the P18.7 billion Kaliwa Dam
project and the P5.8 billion Angat Dam water transmission project that will
address the water supply needs of Metro Manila, Coloma said.
The Kaliwa Dam project involves the construction
of a dam that will produce 600 million liters of water per day, and a water
conveyance tunnel with a capacity of 2,400 million liters per day in
anticipation of the future construction of the Laiban Dam.
The project will cover portions of the
municipalities of Tanay, Antipolo, and Teresa in Rizal province and the towns
of General Nakar and Infanta in Quezon province.
The project will be implemented through
public-private partnership (PPP), under variants of the build-lease-and-transfer
(BLT) scheme.
Meanwhile, the Angat Dam water transmission
project, which will be financed through a $60 million Asian Development Bank
(ADB) loan, aims to improve the reliability and security of the Angat raw water
transmission system through the rehabilitation of existing conveyances from the
Ipo Dam to the La Mesa treatment plant, Coloma said.
The NEDA Board also approved the development of
local water districts through the approved implementation of the Local Water
Utilities Administration’s (LWUA) initiative and a $60 million (P2.7 billion)
ADB loan facility.
Three pilot projects will jump-start the
expected upgrading of facilities and services of some 60 local water districts
nationwide. These will be implemented in Koronadal City and in the metropolitan
San Fernando City-Pampanga area and 15 water districts in Bulacan.
Also approved was the National Irrigation
Administration’s (NIAs) Malinao Dam improvement project in Bohol that will
double the impounding capacity of the existing dam for irrigation needs of the
underserved areas of the Bohol Integrated Irrigation System. The project is
estimated to cost P653 million.
The P10.6-billion Cebu bus rapid transit project
was likewise approved for implementation, the Palace official said. The
project, which will be completed in 2017, will address Cebu's need for a mass
transport facility in its bustling metropolis.
It will be financed through loans from the
Agence Francaise de Development (AFD) and the International Bank for
Reconstruction and Development-World Bank through its clean technology fund.
The government is also allocating P4.1 billion
to improve the runway and modernize facilities at the Busuanga airport in
Palawan.
This is expected to boost the growth of tourism
in Palawan, given the 47 percent average annual growth in passenger traffic in
Busuanga and Coron, Palawan, Coloma said.
Also approved for implementation was the LRT 2
operations and maintenance project, estimated at P16.5 billion, to increase
operating efficiency from the present level of 67 percent (or six out of 18
train-sets) operational daily to 95 percent availability of the total LRT 2
fleet.
The NEDA Board also approved the P1.2 billion
Laoag airport road link project that will provide easier access to the Laoag
international airport and the Currimao port in Ilocos Norte, to boost trade and
tourism. The project will be funded from the general appropriations of the
Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
The government will expand and modernize the
Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital, the largest maternity care and birthing
facility in the country, to increase its capacity from the present 447 beds to
800 beds.
The P2 billion project will be borne by DOH from
general appropriations.
Also approved Thursday was the Clark Green City
project that will cover the municipalities of Capas and Bamban in Tarlac
province.
Initially approved was the disposition of 1,300
hectares, constituting phase one of the project.
The recent groundbreaking of the proposed
University of the Philippines campus in Clark is part of this initial
implementation phase, Coloma said. PND (as)
Office of the President still studying
Bangsamoro Basic Law: Palace
The Office of the President is rigorously
studying the Bangsamoro Basic Law so that it could pass legal scrutiny,
Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr.
said Friday.
It was reported that the Bangsamoro Transition
Commission is worried that the draft bill would not come out on time and that
the Palace would release a watered-down version.
Coloma however allayed the commission's fears,
saying the Palace merely wants to ensure that the Bangsamoro Law has legal
basis.
"Ang pinagtutuunan ng pansin ng legal staff
ng Tanggapan ng Pangulo ay ang pagsusuri sa mga probisyon ng Bangsamoro Basic
Law upang matiyak na ito ay naaayon sa Kostitusyon at maaaring maisabatas sa
dalawang kamara ng ating Kongreso," he told reporters.
"Alam din nila na mayroong urgency ang
pagpapasa nito dahil sa naitakda nang timetable doon sa ating roadmap to
achieving the full fruition of the Bangsamoro political entity."
He said the Palace's legal staff is studying
everything, so that the President could come up with an informed decision when
the draft law reaches his desk.
After the President's approval, the Palace will immediately
forward it to Congress, he said, adding that the legislators are likewise
studying the draft law’s provisions.
"Ang ating mga mambabatas sa Kongreso ay
nagsasagawa na rin ng kanilang preparation, nag-aaral na rin sila ng iba’t
ibang probisyon ng Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro at patuloy naman
ang ating pagsisikap na maganap ito sa takdang panahon para masunod pa rin ang
itinakdang timetable, he said. PND (as)
PCGG still committed to recovering Marcos'
ill-gotten wealth, says Palace
The Presidential Commission on Good Government
(PCGG) has not wavered in going after the ill-gotten wealth of the Marcoses,
the Palace said on Friday.
The Palace's comment came after the House of
Representatives released a list that showed Former First Lady now Ilocos Norte
Representative Imelda Marcos as the richest congresswoman.
Some quarters have said that this means the
government has failed to go after her wealth, which was acquired through
illegal means.
In a press briefing in Malacanang, Presidential
Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. said it is not
a surprise that Mrs Marcos belongs to the richest lawmakers in the country.
"Yun namang binanggit ninyo na pagsisiyasat
tungkol sa ill-gotten wealth, patuloy namang isinasagawa ‘yan ng ating
PCGG," Coloma told reporters.
"At kung tutunghayan ang record ng PCGG,
may maipagmamalaki naman silang mga significant achievements na natamo na sa
kabila ng maraming hamon at balakid," he added.
Despite the hurdles, Coloma said the PCGG
continues to do its mandate of recovering the illegally acquired assets of the
Marcoses.
This week, the House of Representatives released
the statements of assets, liabilities, and net worth (SALNs) of its members.
Professional boxer and Sarangani Representative
Manny Pacquiao is the lone billionaire in the lower House, declaring a net
worth of P1,345,499,575.
Imelda Marcos is the second richest lawmaker in
the House of Representatives with a net worth of P922,800,000. She is followed
by House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte, Jr., with P819,749,339.
Marcos' nephew, Leyte 1st District
Representative Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, made it to the top 10 with a
declared net worth of P475,002,017.59. PND (as)
