THE PEOPLE CAN NOT WAIT

Everyone, we are sure of it, has seen the photos and the images of Philippine communities submerged  in  water, of people coping with the destruction of their homes, of the widespread damage to agriculture and fisheries by heavy rains, strong winds, landslides and the raging waters of its floods. Everyone is keenly aware of the rising number of deaths and missing people caused by the rampage of Tropical Storm Kristine/Trami. Everyone who has relatives and friends back home have called, texted, gone on social media to ask if Kristine has hit their areas. And if everyone is safe. And if everyone is dry.

Kristine is a severe tropical storm. It is neither a tsunami nor a storm surge. It is the 11th typhoon to hit the Philippines in 2024. Filipinos know that typhoons hit the country every year, an average of 20 typhoons every year!  And we know that Kristine, once it has destroyed everything good and beautiful in its deadly path, will be gone only to have another typhoon ram the Philippines again.

Just like in past disasters and calamities, our kababayan were in action. Disaster response teams of people’s organizations, faith-based groups, citizen’s sectoral organizations were activated and got going – in collective reflex actions across the Philippines  to move and act quickly to help. Why? Because to wait for the Marcos Jr government  and his agencies to get their act together and move promptly and effectively would be to waste precious time and lives. People needed to take action rather than watch the flood waters rise.

Social media posted an insert of president Marcos, Jr boasting at the last SONA, “mahigit limang libo limang daang flood control project ang natapos na at marami pang iba ang kasalukuyang ginagawa sa ibang bansa”  while footage showed  people walking in moving floods, in waist-deep water where there used to be roads. And netizens shared the Tiktok  exposing the dumbfounded response of Marcos Jr to the news that “Sir, out of 600 barangays in Naga, 300 are fully submerged, unpassable by cars and in need of rubber boats and 6×6 trucks to evacuate people….they are in desperate need, hindi  kaya ng local government. “

“Anong gagawin natin?” asked president Marcos Jr. while scratching his head!!! That response has gone viral on Tiktok and sums up what the government response is all about! Naku, hindi alam ang gagawin!

ABS-CBN quoted him when he said: “I’m feeling a little helpless here, kasi wala tayong magagawa, all we can do is sit tight, wait, hope, pray that there is not too much damage, that there are no casualties, and go in as soon and as quickly as possible.”

“… Wala, wala tayong… We are at the mercy of the weather as we always are so we have to wait for the true effects of this typhoon Kristine, alright? “ he said to the press and to the nation.

Teka, wait po kamo? His presidential stance is enough to make anyone with a heart and conscience weep, but righteous anger prevails and people’s organizations do what needs to be done, and not WAIT!!!!

Typhoon Kristine/Trami is not the first typhoon to hit the Philippines, kaya dapat mas handa tayo, di ba? In an ideal world of disaster preparedness,  it would have made perfect sense for the government and its agencies to be prepared for disasters and emergencies, ready to deploy people, resources, boats, amphibian trucks, food, water, clothes, ready to evacuate people when necessary,  and at a moment’s notice – since everybody knows typhoons will hit the country every year. The Marcos Jr. government has been found wanting and it has to be made accountable.

The damages brought by typhoons and tropical storms like Kristine happen and can be  explained simply, like this popular post made by netizens:

And “kanila” refers to the people in power, the ruling elite and politicians, the big comprador class and the big landlords. And these are the rich and the powerful who put profits before people, never mind if raging floods happen! And who have pocketed government funds that should have gone to people’s projects and services.

The Rappler editorial on Oct 28 reads: “Ang big picture ay ito: ang mga mapanirang aktibidad tulad ng quarrying, mining, at logging ay may long-term irreversible effects. Pinapalala nito ang erosion na may papel sa landslide. Isang ginahasang kalikasan ang ipamamana natin sa salinlahi kapag nagpatuloy ito.”

Amirah “Mek” Lidasan, the Moro woman activist who will run for the Senate in 2025 under the Makabayan slate, echoed this when she posted this: “Matindi ang epekto ng mga bagyo dahil winawasak ng mga plantasyon, minahan, at dam ang ating mga lupaing ninuno.”

Indeed, the people are fed up and are tired of being resilient, what they demand is accountability from the people in power.  

Migrante Canada, activated its disaster response arm SAGIP MIGRANTE Canada, and asks the support of our kababayan and friends in Canada to help the many communities devastated by Typhoon Kristine/Trami. Your donations can be sent by e-transfer to Migrante Canada at [email protected]

Migrante Canada adds that “Makakaasa po na maakarating ang tulong ninyo. Your donations will be acknowledged and we will make sure that updates on the relief operations with partners on the ground in the Philippines, like the Consortium for People’s Development -Disaster Response and Migrante International, are done. Maraming salamat po!”

We can act now, do many actions, rather than WAIT!

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