Rizal 2nd District Rep. Fidel Nograles is urging the government to allocate funds for the creation of permanent, disaster-resilient evacuation centers.
“Sa panahon ngayon na nagtatalo para sa espasyo ang quarantine facilities at evacuation centers, ang pinakamalinaw na solusyon ay ang pagpapatayo ng permanenteng evacuation centers,” Nograles said.
“We have to deal with the reality that at least once a year, our country faces a disaster of a scale that requires evacuation.”
The neophyte lawmaker said that given that the country experiences strong typhoons regularly, having permanent evacuation centers rather than make-shift ones should be a top priority.
“We have to deal with the reality that at least once a year, our country faces a disaster of a scale that requires evacuation,” said Nograles.
In the past, education has had to take a backseat since many evacuation centers are set up in schools, the solon also said.
The Harvard-trained lawyer added that the COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the need for permanent evacuation centers, with quarantine facilities taking up the space usually occupied by the former.
He noted that even the Department of Education has chimed in on the issue, with the latter calling on the government not to use schools as quarantine facilities and evacuation centers at the same time.
“If there are quarantine areas for COVID [in schools], then it will be used as an evacuation center, I don’t think that should be encouraged,” Education Secretary Leonor Briones said during a recent “Laging Handa” Public Briefing.
The permanent facilities, besides being disaster-resilient, should have access to running water, and should adopt engineering solutions that would prevent the spread of disease while maximizing space.
Nograles also said that the pandemic increases the pressure to discard the usual and de-humanizing practice of cramming a large number of people in evacuation centers.
“It shouldn’t have taken a pandemic for us to realize the perils of cramming people like sardines in make-shift environments. Pero narito na rin lang tayo, huwag sana nating talikuran ang pangangailangang tugunan ang isyung ito,” the lawmaker said.
“Itigil na natin ang pag-convert sa ating mga eskwelahan at basketball court. Magtayo tayo ng pasilidad na kayang tagalan ang epekto ng sakuna, at isinasaisip ang kalusugan at dignidad ng mga kababayan natin,” he added.
The permanent facilities, besides being disaster-resilient, should have access to running water, and should adopt engineering solutions that would prevent the spread of disease while maximizing space, Nograles also said.
He added that he is also setting up a team to study the feasibility of creating a permanent evacuation center in his own district.