Governors' and mayors' responsibilities during disasters

Governors and mayors, and all congressmen, should not be travelling abroad, much less going on junkets, cruises, and even pilgrimages while their provinces, congressional districts, cities and municipalities are being besieged by typhoons, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and even pandemics. "Mahiya naman sila".

I challenge all of them, especially those in Cebu, to read, know, understand, accept, and embrace as their advocacies to be disseminated, explained and endorsed, at least two landmark legislations: Republic Act 7160, otherwise known as the Local Government Code, and Republic Act 10121, otherwise known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010. All LGU officials and their respective department heads should put all the provisions of these two laws to heart.

The Local Government Code's declaration of policy states that as part of the state's principle on a genuine and meaningful local autonomy is the mandate to enable provinces, cities, and municipalities to attain their fullest development as self-reliant communities and make them more effective partners in the attainment of national plans. The law intends to provide a more responsive and accountable local government structure instituted through a system of decentralization whereby LGUs are given more powers, authority, responsibilities, and resources.

The Local Government Code establishes in every LGU an accountable, efficient and dynamic organizational structure and operating mechanisms to meet the priority needs and service requirements of its communities. There shall be a continuing mechanism to enhance local autonomy through legislative enabling acts and administrative and organizational reforms. The maintenance of ecological balance and the care of the environment is a joint responsibility between the national government and the LGUs.

The Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act upholds the peoples' constitutional rights to life and property by addressing the root causes of vulnerabilities to disasters, strengthening the country's institutional capacity for disaster risk reduction and management and building the resilience of local communities to disasters including climate change impacts. This law also adheres and adopts the internationally-accepted principles of humanitarian assistance and the global effort on risk reduction as concrete expression of the country's commitment to overcome human sufferings due to recurring disasters.

Governors and mayors should be on top of all efforts along these lines because RA 10121 incorporates internationally-accepted principles of disaster risk management, including the crucial roles of local executives. Thus the creation and implementation of national, regional, and local sustainable and development and poverty reduction strategies, policies, plans, and budgets require the leadership and management responsibilities of governors and mayors.

LGU executives should be leading all actions on the adoption of a disaster risk reduction and management approach which is holistic, comprehensive, integrated, and proactive in lessening the socio-economic and environmental impacts of disasters including climate change and promote the involvement and participation of all sectors and all stakeholders concerned, at all levels, especially the local community. It is also the core component of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan to strengthen the capacity of LGUs for reducing disaster risks and enhancing disaster preparedness and preparedness at local levels.

Governors and mayors should lead in adopting and implementing coherent, comprehensive, integrated, efficient, and responsive disaster risk reduction programs. They should lead in making sure that all efforts in disaster risk and management should be gender responsive, sensitive to indigenous cultures and traditions and respectful of human rights. We should hasten to add that disaster management should be non-partisan and should not be weaponized by governors and mayors so as to favor their supporters and marginalize, ignore, and discriminate against members of rival political groups.

All these responsibilities cannot be performed if and when LGU officials still continue to go on foreign junkets when weather disturbances were already announced in advance. They should not squander public funds and enjoy foreign trips while their constituencies suffer in disasters, calamities, and other untoward incidents. Mahiya naman sila.

These include congressmen who, while deemed national officials, are always using local communities as the base of their political power. They cannot pretend to be representatives of the people and then abandon them in times of crises and emergencies. Mahiya din naman sila.