MANILA, Philippines — President Rodrigo Duterte and Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go visited and checked the situation of more than 1,214 families affected by the eruption of Taal Volcano who are taking refuge in Batangas City on Tuesday.

Together with other key officials, the President led the discussion on how to address and mitigate issues that the country is currently facing, especially with the possibility of Taal Volcano erupting again anytime soon.

The senator also participated in the relief operations and in the situational briefing.

During their visit, the President led the ceremonial distribution of calamity aid that consisted of food packs and cash assistance for every family from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), hygiene kits from the Department of Health (DOH), and food items from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO).

In addition to these, livelihood and financial assistance from the government were also turned over by the Department of Agriculture (DA) for the benefit of affected farmers and fisherfolk.

During the briefing, Go said the President ordered a simultaneous construction of “strong” evacuation centers and hopes that the construction will be finished before his term ends.

Go expressed support towards President Duterte’s statement during the situational briefing on building permanent evacuation centers, especially in areas vulnerable to natural disasters.

Seeking to address the vulnerability of the country to the impacts of climate change and natural as well as human-made disasters, Go filed recently a bill providing for mandatory evacuation centers in all cities, provinces and municipalities nationwide.

Known as “An Act Establishing a Mandatory Evacuation Center in all Cities, Provinces and Municipalities, Appropriating Funds Therefor”, Senate Bill (SB) No. 1228 provides for the establishment of an evacuation center in every city, province and municipality throughout the country.

Go said that it is only necessary to build permanent evacuation centers nationwide to ensure the safety of Filipinos in times of natural calamities and other disasters given the  geographic location of the country.

“The Philippines is highly vulnerable to natural hazards, attributed primarily to the country’s location. The country is positioned along the so-called ‘Pacific Ring of Fire,’ an area where earthquakes and volcanic activities are more frequent than in any other part of the world,” Go stated in the explanatory note of the proposed measure.

“Hence, it is high time that the State establish evacuation centers in all cities, provinces, and municipalities which will cater to the basic needs of the victims of these disasters and provide them temporary shelters that will guarantee their safety, promote their social wellbeing, and guard their welfare while they recover and rebuild their homes and their lives,” he added.

Hazardous events include typhoons, floods, fires, storm surges, weather disturbances and outbreaks of illness or disease that may cause imminent danger to human life and property.

The bill also provides for the minimum requirements for every evacuation center, such as its location, amenities and accessibility, operation and management, among others.

Under the measure, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), or its successor, will act as the primary lead agency to oversee the implementation of the act should it be passed into a law.

As for its appropriation, the construction and maintenance of evacuation centers under the measure will be sourced from a portion of the general appropriations for the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

The bill also states that “Every year thereafter, the amounts necessary for the construction and maintenance of evacuation centers shall be included in the list of programs as part of annual budget in the General Appropriations Act.”

In previous interviews, Go—who often goes around the country to aid victims of natural and human-induced disasters—lamented that the victims are often temporarily relocated in barangay centers, plazas, gymnasiums, or basketball courts, which are not ideal for evacuation or shelter. Worse, some Filipinos do not have evacuation available for them at all, according to the senator.

The senator has also constantly advocated and urged colleagues in the Senate and House of Representatives for the establishment of the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR) through his filed bill, Senate Bill (SB) 205. The bill provides for the creation of a sole department that will deal with the mitigation and operations regarding the effects of disasters and natural calamities.

Go added that the DDR will be “an empowered, highly specialized department with clear unity of command and primarily responsible in ensuring safe, adaptive and disaster-resilient communities.” The DDR will also have funds that will finance its operations in disaster risk reduction, disaster preparedness, response, recovery, rehabilitation and building forward better programs, projects and activities. One of these programs will be the construction of evacuation centers to provide comfortable facilities to those distressed Filipinos affected by such incidents. (Stacy Ang/IAMIGO/Currentph.com)