In the Philippines, typhoons shatter myth of disaster resiliency
In the Philippines, typhoons shatter myth of disaster resiliency
Photo courtesy of Bro. Ciriaco Santiago
Instead of building disaster resiliency by improving the lives of the Filipino people, the Philippine government romanticizes the so-called ability of Filipinos to rise above crisis after crisis, in an attempt to absolve itself from criminal neglect.
By JANESS ANN J. ELLAO
Bulatlat.com
MANILA – As one typhoon after the other battered the nation in recent weeks, a myth has been shattered – that of disaster resilience and of economic development that – almost five years since a promise of change was ushered into the presidency — should have already trickled down to the poorest of the poor.
A recent viral video showing a Philippine Air Force helicopter dropping relief packs in the middle of nowhere in flood-stricken Tuguegarao, a city in northern Philippines, followed by Filipinos scrambling and rushing to get it, is quite telling of where the country is at now, as far as disaster resiliency is concerned.
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