President Duterte called for the repeal of a law requiring damage assessment before declaring a state of calamity.
PRESIDENT DUTERTE — The Philippine President called for the repeal of a law requiring an assessment of the damage in disaster-hit areas before declaring a state of calamity.
During his “Talk to the People” public briefing aired Monday night, the President advised the next administration on the need for a law on the immediate release of funds for disaster-hit areas.
President Duterte’s statement came days after he apologized for the delay in the government response to the massive impact of typhoon “Odette”.
Malacañang has defended President Duterte’s declaration of the state of calamity 4 days after the wrath of the typhoon, saying it’s made at the appropriate time.
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Also, President Duterte said that the law, which he called “stupid”, became a problem in the immediate declaration, which will help in the speedy relief efforts and rehabilitation in typhoon-hit areas.
“Bago ako makagalaw and that is really so many provisions in the law that would hinder the government to just act immediately because there has to be… before a declaration there has to be an evaluation and assessment of damage before you can declare state of calamity,” President Duterte said. “These are stupid laws passed by Congress sila man ang final word diyan whether it should be or should be not.“
Typhoon “Odette” first hit the Philippines last December 16 and its wrath continued to a few days as the typhoon crossed parts of the Visayas and Mindanao.
The President said that the evaluation and assessment couldn’t be immediately done while rescue efforts were ongoing in typhoon-stricken areas.
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