The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved a substitute bill, which has not been assigned a number, that will establish the Department of Disaster Resilience (DDR).
Albay Representative Joey Salceda, one of the sponsors of the bill that was passed by the joint House government reorganization and disaster resilience committee, stated that the DDR will serve as the main government entity tasked with ensuring the creation of safe, adaptive, and disaster-resilient communities.
The DDR will also be the leading agency responsible for coordinating, organizing, and managing the national efforts to reduce disaster risks, prepare for and respond to disasters, recover and rehabilitate, and build a better future after a calamity.
Salceda mentioned that these provisions aim to fill the gaps found in the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, or Republic Act 10121, which created the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).
“A key weakness of Republic Act 10121 is that the NDRRMC is not a focused agency with capacity to implement programs, activities, and projects, including pre-disaster activities. The recent death toll of Kristine has made it painfully obvious that we need to foster, and in some cases, recover a culture of preparedness only made possible by strong, empowered institutions,” Salceda said during his presentation before the bill was approved at the committee level.
The storm Kristine, which struck the Philippines last October, reportedly caused the deaths of at least 150 people.
“Good institutions save lives. Flawed institutions endanger lives. I think we are all aligned that the current NDRRMC framework, which leaves little room for preparation and permanent resilience, is lacking,” Salceda added.
Salceda further mentioned that he had requested the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office to continue working with the Department of National Defense (DND) to secure its support for the bill.
“I understand that the [Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro] still has reservations on the whole bill. I am still optimistic we can arrive at common points of agreement,” said the Bicolano lawmaker.
