Office of Civil Defense wants stronger NDRRMC

MANILA, Philippines —  In a bid to further improve the country’s civil defense and disaster preparedness, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) is seeking to amend the law creating the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).

The proposal is among three priority actions the OCD has outlined for 2025, OCD administrator Undersecretary Ariel Nepomuceno told the hosts of the Bagong Pilipino podcast.

“One of the amendments we are requesting is to allow us to create an executive committee that will be in charge of making major decisions. Currently, we need the full council to do that,” Nepomuceno said, referring to the 41 government agencies and five private sector representatives that make up the NDRRMC.

“We believe that we would be able to do more if the law will be modified,” he said, noting that time is of the essence during disasters.

The OCD also looks to improve the Philippines’ early warning system to heighten the country’s disaster mitigation efforts.

“With the help of the DENR (Department of Environment and Natural Resources) and the DOST (Department of Science and Technology), we want to be more creative and more comprehensive in our warning system,” Nepomuceno explained, highlighting this as an essential tool to enable early action and protect lives, livelihood and properties.

The OCD chief cited as a perfect example the nationwide warning system of Thailand, which has over 600 towers with sirens. Apart from the sirens, Thailand also has a public address system that tells the people what to expect every 10 to 15 minutes.

Last but not least, the OCD, with the help of the media, plans to embark on an educational campaign on disaster resilience, particularly targeting the youth, local government units (LGUs) and disaster responders.

“Being the first responders, we want our LGUs to be empowered and accountable for their own localities. Some LGUs are still dependent on the national government. But it takes a while for us to arrive in their areas during disasters,” he said.

“They should accept the responsibility and take the necessary actions such as investing in rubber boats for rescue operations,” Nepomuceno stressed.