ABOUT a million devotees and tourists attended this year’s colorful and decidedly successful Kalibo Ati–atihan Festival in Aklan, under the able direction of Kalibo Mayor Emerson S. Lachica.
Considered as the Mother of all Philippine festivals in terms of its ethnic uniqueness, long history and tradition, the Kalibo Ati–atihan stands out as one of the most unique celebrations devoted to the Sto. Nino.
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Urgency to address disasters. In just over a month, the country, still reeling from previous catastrophes, was battered again by a series of disasters and calamities that affected thousands and devastated properties. Despite the much-vaunted Filipino resiliency, the impact of the misfortune was simply overwhelming.
The train of calamitous events started last Dec. 15, 2019 when a 6.8 magnitude earthquake shook Davao del Sur. Nine days later, typhoon Ursula swept through the Visayan region, leaving in its wake over a hundred people dead.
On Jan. 6, 2020, a 5.4 magnitude tremor struck Davao Oriental, followed by another 4.6 magnitude eight days later, which hit Polomolok, South Cotabato. The worry was further complicated when a US drone killed Iran’s top general at the start of 2020. The tragic event promptly earned retaliation from Tehran, which fired missiles at American bases in Iraq. As an offshoot, Manila decided to declare a ‘compulsory evacuation’ of Filipinos from Iraq.
What really stunned Filipinos, however, was the Jan. 12 Taal Volcano eruption in Batangas which saw the mass evacuation of thousands of families from communities around Taal and adjacent areas.
The national government promptly responded to the contingency, which triggered a spontaneous show of impressive Bayanihan support from among all Filipinos for the eruption victims. The train of calamities, however, has highlighted the urgent need to pass the proposed law creating the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR) to effectively and efficiently address disasters. The measure now pends in the Senate.
The urgency to set up the DDR specifically focused on addressing disasters, is not just about consolidating state resources in times of calamities, but also about synchronizing all efforts when tragic events happens, especially evacuation or relocation becomes necessary.
The DDR, if created, will unify the fragmented approaches by various agencies in responding to disaster emergencies. The consolidated approach will also eradicate the blame game among such agencies when shortfalls occur. The DDR creation has now become an urgent concern. Hopefully, fractious politics will spare the vital measure.
