Habang pinapakinggan ko ang sinasabi ng mga rescuers na gustuhin man nilang tulungan ang lahat na humihingi ng tulong noong kasagsagan ng bagyong Ondoy, hindi nila kaya dahil limitado ang kanilang mga gamit, naala-ala ko ang $35,000 na .dalawang hapunan ni Gloria Arroyo at ng kanyang mga alipores sa New York noong isang buwan.
Sinabi ni Lt. Col. Edgard Arevalo, spokesman ng Philippine Navy, na iilan lang ang kanilang rescue team, rubber boats at trucks. Sinabi sa TV hindi yata umaabot 20 ang rubber boats ng Navy.
Sinabi rin ni Marikina Mayor Marites Fernando na 13 lang ang rubber boats ng Marikina.
Halos 12 milyon ang tao sa Metro Manila. Halos 500,000 naman ang populasyon ng Marikina. Mga 30 lang ang rubber boats samantalang bahain naman talaga ang Metro Manila.
Kahit pa anong sabihin ng mga pamahalaaan na pambihira ang dami ng ulan, hindi yun katanggap-tanggap na dahilan sa ang kakulangan ng gamit. Hindi maaring sabihin na walang pera. Ay kung kaya-kaya ni Arroyo maglabas ng $20,000 para sa isang hapunan sa Le Cirque, isang mamahaling restaurant sa New York at $15,000 naman sa Bobby Van’s Steakhouse sa Washington D.C, bakit walang pera para sa rubber boats.
Ang isang rubber boat ay nagkakahalaga ng $925.00. Mga P43,000 yun. Kung pinambili ng rubber boats ang $35,000 (P1.6 milyon) may nagamit sana silang dagdag na 35 bangka para mag-rescue sa mga na stranded sa baha. Ang Marikina at maraming lugar sa Quezon City at Rizal at parang dagat at bangka lang ang maaring sakyan para marating ang mga bahay.
Hindi sana ganun kabagal ang pagtulong sa mga apektado ng bagyo kung may sapat na gamit. Ang lalong nakakangitngit ng kalooban ay ang nadiskubre ni Rep. Teofisto Guingona III ng Bukidnon noong isang buwan na ang P800 milyon na para sa contingency fund ay ginamit ni Arroyo sa kanyang mga biyahe sa ibang bansa bitbit ang sangkaterbang mga kongresista at senador.
Noong Hulyo sa kanyang State of the Nation address, pinagyabang pa ni Arroyo ang kahandaan ng Pilipinas sa mga kalamidad dahil daw sa galing ng kanyang pagpamahala. Sabi niya meron raw modernong gamit ang pamahalaan para malaman ang mga darating na kalamidad .
Nasaayos na raw ang flood control infrastructure sa Pinatubo, Agno, Laoag, and Abucay na magbubomba ng tubig mula sa Quezon City at Tondo. ““Patuloy naman yung sa CAMANAVA, dagdag sa Pinatubo, Iloilo, Pasig- Marikina, Bicol River Basin, at saka river basin ng Mindanao,” sabi niya.
O ano ngayon ang mapagyabang niya? Hindi kaya siya naku-konsyensya?
Walang konsiensya ang animal na yan!
The bitch admitted that they are “overwhelmed” by Ondoy!
That’s no excuse for her incompetence to rescue the helpless victims of Ondoy!
Nasaan ang pera namin na dapat ay matagal ng naibili ng equipment para sa paghahanda sa kalamidad na ganito?!
Tangna, ikinain lang sa New York at DC ni Gloria at nai-tae na ninyo samantalang ang mga biktima ni Ondoy ay patay at nangangapa ng masisilungan at pagkain.
Gaya ng poste ko sa isang loop “Kapag wala na si Gloria ay hindi na ganyan katindi ang bagyo sa Pinas”.
Mukhang galit rin ang sumulat ng Malaya editorial at nagkapareho kami ng tema.
Lift the curse…‘Unsolicited proposal for Gloria: Hie off to a foreign destination. And stay there for keeps.’
“Mawawala na malamang ang walang hintong kamalasang sinapit nitong kawawang bayan.”
May balat sa puwet na hugis pusong itim. Katulad ng kanyang botang suot. 😛
Classic case of too little, too late again. While i have no wish of going into nitpicking again, it pains me no end to note that this cursed admin never learned its lessons in spite of tragedy after tragedy. I can feel the anguish of those who have lost a loved one as the husband of our best friend perished in the deluge. Reminds me of my previous stint when i was CO of a disaster response unit years ago somewhere in the Visayas. Imagine, we only had ONE rubber boat to service the whole province during typhoon season. No amount of pleading to the LGU to procure the necessary equipment moved them into action. Our Navy and Coast Guard do not lack for heroic men and women who will go in harm’s way if duty calls them. Buwisit lang kasi ang namamahala sa atin kaya tayo minamalas palagi. Parang si Bush nang nangyari ang Katrina sa US. Malupit talaga magbiro ang tadhana sa mga buwisit na namumuno. Pati mga inosente nadadamay. . .
Sabi ni Miriam Santiago ay 56.5 bilyong piso na ang nakoletang road users’ tax buhat nung 2001. Di ba para sa drainage systems at road maintenance yan? Nakaninong bulsa ito?
palutangin na lang natin si Gloria.. sya gawin nating rubber boat, e made of plastic naman sya…
Suso lang ni Gloria ang lulutang dahil may silicon.
Yung mga buwaya na nakawala sa Pasig Nature Park natagpuan na…sa Malakanyang!
i really do not understand it.
everyone in government says it was an unusual rainfall kaya the floods happened. Ondoy had no winds…as far as we had observed over here (whenever a typhoon strikes since we live high up the mountains) we see that the strong winds help dissipate the rainclouds and so the heavy rains do not fall down in torrents. And when it does, flashfloods do occur here but there are natural riverways as directed by trees and foliage.
Now the bishop and mayor of Infanta have exposed the constant illegal logging in their places. I have been there and saw the logs like toothpicks being slid down the river to go to the trucks to go to Manila.
The rivers swelled, the dams may have really broken…all these because simply of torrential rains??? There simply was not enough forest to absorb all those waters!!!
Dams may be the answer but they just store water like basins and if they break…! The Sierra Madre is a long stretch of rainforest and as the wise men had said, the spine of Luzon. Well, the spine is broken in many, many parts and everyone barks up the wrong tree! Reforestation is just lip service. It is not the solution kasi it is too late. Mother nature is still the best forester.
@ TonGuE-tWisTeD: “Suso lang ni Gloria ang lulutang dahil may silicon.”
I don’t think silicon will float on water, sorry nalang siya at di siya liligtasin ng fake boobs niya. 😛
Shouldn’t the people file a class law suit against the government for negligence resulting to property damages and multiple homicide?
Ano ba pakialam ko sa inyo kung mangalunod kayong lahat?
Ano ba magagawa ninyo kundi magputok ang butse habang kumakain kami ng masarap?
Pasensiya kayo, naniwala kayo sa “Ay em sori” ko noon at wala kayong magagawa kung “magbelat” naman ako sa inyo ngayon!
Ang katapat lamang ninyo ngayon ay konting paamo ng aking byutipul peys at papungay ng aking pantalaysing ays at pagsasabi ko ng “akoy nakikiramay sa inyong pinagdadaanan at nakikiramay sa mga namatayan”.
Pagkatapos nito, ilang araw na ule ay maghahanda ako sa panibagong paglalakbay, kaya mga kapanalig, sino ang gustong umangkas?
Magpakasaya tayo habang narito pa ako sa puwesto!
Taralets na!
Galing kay Jerry Gurierrez:
Sa panahon ngayon tulong ang kailangan ng mga nasalanta ng bagyo hindi yang mga puro batikos mo na wala naman katuturan maga na nguso mo sa mga kadadaldal mo.Paminsan minsan mag-isip ka nga, May naitulong kana ba? Ikaw ang walang konsensya!
Ellen, ipahintulot mo.
Jerry Gurierrez, puwedeng paki e-mail kay Miss Ellen Tordesillas ang iyong kumpletong address diyan sa Pinas at sa iyo ko na ipapadala itong aming konting nakalap na tulong para sa mga nasalanta ng baha?
Ano ba gusto mo’ng gawin namin dito, partikular itong may ari ng blog, magpapalakpak at magtatalon sa tuwa sa mga kapalpakan at pakitang taong pagdamay ng mga namumunong timawang hayok sa salapi at kapangyarihan?
Bago ka dumakdak, ANAK, humarap ka muna sa salamin at tanungin ang sarili mo KUNG HINDI NASAYANG ang iyong boto sa pinakamamahal mong panggulo, hane?
The callousness and greed is almost incomprehensible.
But be prepared for another multi-billion peso idiocy.
There are plans afoot by DPWH to build a tunnel highway right under Roxas Boulevard. Yes, right there in the sinking part of the city of Manila.
The proposed tunnel highway, called the Metro Manila Tunnel Expressway is expected to cost P35 billion.
The first portion will run 8 kms from the MIA Road to P. Burgos St and cost an estimated P9.9 billion. The second portion will run 20 kms from P. Burgos St. to Valenzuela, presumably under Rizal Ave, and will cost an estimated
P25 billion.
The reason for this mega-project? To reduce travel time from the Luneta to the Coastal Road from one hour to 10 to 15 minutes. And to speed up traffic between the North and South sides of Metro Manila.
This is not only idiocy in prioritizing already scant resources, it is extreme greed salivating for the billions in commissions that can be had from such a humongous P35B project. Note: The tunnels is only 28 km long.
Imagine what P35B can do for farm-to-market roads, bridges, warehouse and trading facilities in the provinces, all targeted for food production and rural livelihoods.
Imagine what that tunnel will turn into should another Ondoy come along.
With global warming, the first areas to be affected by rising ocean and sea waters will be the coastal areas. And with the now increasing heavy rainfalls, the waters from the mountains have nowhere to go but down to meet the oceans and the seas.
MBW,
I had the opportunity some 10 years ago to travel from south to north Luzon along the Pacific side. It was sheer beauty. Lush green forests, beautiful rivers and brooks and immaculate beaches.
But I noticed that there were already logs being smuggled out of that area.
How bad is it now?
Ellen,
P1.6 M yun pinangkain. Dagdag mo pa diyan yung P6M na ipinantip dun sa mga roomboys, valets, at limo drivers sa Washington at New York. Talagang santambak na rubber boats ang mabibili sana.
i donot know what kind of engineers has taken over the dpwh. tunnels are mainly used in mountainous regions and one does not have to be an engineer to understand this. of course it is possible to build tunnels around manila but it will be much cheaper to build skyways.
“The proposed tunnel highway, called the Metro Manila Tunnel Expressway is expected to cost P35 billion.”-PC
And when another Ondoy hits Pinas, that tunnel would trap lives not only in the hundreds but in the thousands…mas mahaba at malaking swimming pool yan kesa sa mga underpass ng Metro Manila.
Ebdane’s major project for his political interest?
chi: Mayroon bang nalunod sa underpasses during Ondoy? Wala naman, hindi ba?
Eto ang dapat bilin na rubber-boats. Military-grade.
http://www.avon-workboats.com/page/cc520
Iyong outboard motor, sobra na sa $3,000 cada isa.
Phil, I went to Infanta via cainta because of an invitation from a friend helping out a parish priest in a place named Rizal. That was in the early 90’s pa but then logging was already rampant and done by prominent people there—both military and politicians. The school children were taught (according to the priest) to report to authorities illegal logging activities. of course, the innocents did tell the priest after reporting to the authorities (also in cahoots).
I remember it was constantly raining there (being a rainforest zone) and the river was filled with floating logs (filled!!!). The logs were slid down from atop the mountains. When we had to return back home, the roadsides were full of small waterfalls and the bus we rode was stuck because of a landslide. Not to worry…the people were used to it. another bus from cainta came and we crossed the mudslide and changed places with the other passengers of the said bus. It was funny at that time. But now…after many, many years I can only see why the floods had happened.
Wala namang nabalita, Pepito.
Kaya lang ay tama ang sabi ni norpil na ang tunnel ay mas mabuting i-construct sa mga bundukin at hindi sa lubog-baha palagi na Metro Manila na wala yatang vision ang mga urban planners.
Ang English Channel tunnnel ng magkasunog years back ay maraming na-trap, yan ay between two 1st world countries pa ha. E sa Pinas kapag meron ambitious na project na mas malaki ang naibubulsas kesa sa paggawa, kaya below grade ang yari. Tubig at apoy, parehong mabilis pumatay…
malaki rin ang kaibhan ng underpass sa manila kumpara sa highway tunnel na babagtas ng kahabaan ng manila area.bukod pa sa tubig at apoy ay problema rin ang hangin. dahil kung highway ito ay maraming sasakyan na daraan at kailangan ang electricity para sa ventilation.baka sa tuwing magkakaroon ng blackout ay maraming hindi makahinga sa tunnel na iniisip nila.sa madali’t sabi mas maraming risk na involve sa tunnel kaysa tulay o sa karsada sa ibabaw ng lupa.
Isa sa hinangaan kong flood control system is not even found in the US or Europe, but 3-4 hours flight away lang (same time-zone natin) — the Kuala Lumpur Smart flood control system. One of its main component is a double-deck 9.7 km. toll tunnel that serves as an expressway motorway underground during rush hour and convertible to a giant flash flood drainage system during the rainy seasons. Other components of the project are estuary basins for the floodwater that they can store for use by the city.
Kasi tulad rin ng Metro Manila ang Kuala Lumpur — pag umulan nang todo, bahain din. They were able to finish this project in 4 years (2003 to 2007). Total cost is USD 514.6M. Kayang kaya natin ito — kung may pang NBN/ZTE at NAIA T3 (USD 600M), and kapalit naman e kaligtasan ng lives, properties, and minimal disruption of our economy.
Preventive measure ito, but our LGUs must also invest in their own disaster response systems. Wlang pondo na naman ang idadahilan — pucha, bawasan ninyo kasi mga hagad ninyo, mga walang kwentang tarpaulin sa bawat okasyon (kulang na lang i-congratulate ni Mayor at Congressman ang asong nanganak), at bloated LGU bureaucracy (mga empleyadong pinasok ng mga kagawad at bgy chairmen sa munisipyo na 15/30 or ghost employees lang naman). PHP 43,000 lang pala sabi ni Ate Ellen ang bubber boat, walang pondo!!!
Pumaltos iyong Kuala Lumpur flood control.
March2009 news story had these comments:
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Some car owners, meanwhile, had to hire tow trucks to remove their cars, which were submerged in the water, leaving them filled with mud.
Cheras businessman H.K. Tan, 39, said that the flood woes in KL were a never-ending saga. “They always say that something will be done to mitigate the problem. We had so many KL mayors who had promised to solve the flood problem but, so far, there has not been any concrete results,” Tan said.
“I thought the Smart Tunnel was built to curb flooding but I have not seen any change at all,” he said.
Tan blamed what he described as bad city management for the perennial flooding problem.
—
http://thestar.com.my/metro/story.asp?file=/2009/3/5/central/3407226&sec=central
Read more about this proposed tunnel in Tony Abaya’s column item. Here’s the link:
http://www.iskandalo.com/article.html?id=590
Iyong rubber-boats ng Marikina, hindi nagamit ng tama dahil kulang sa training. Masuwerte at walang nalunod sa maling gamit ng rubber-boats.
Thanks, Phil.
Pepito: Thanks for the latest news re-KL flood control.. missed that one, he he…
DND is supposed to have the money to buy those rubber boats… Why are there so few? Simple: corruption!
Inquirer reports:
————–
He (Senen Arabaca, president of Geneve S.A. Philippines Inc.
exclusive distributor of Zodiac professional and military boats)added that the government is in short supply of rubber boats. He has supplied some 500 rubber boats across the country, and the last purchase made by the government to their company was way back in 2000.
In fact, a government agency is set to purchase 75 military boats amounting to P136 million… Private individuals have also purchased boats after “Ondoy,” resulting to a shortage of rubber boats. The next shipment from France, Arabaca said, could take several weeks and even months.
http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/breakingnews/metro/view/20090930-227713/Rubber-boats-not-well-maintained-says-supplier
sandinista: the KL/SMART tunnel only covers two or three of K/Lumpur’s flood districts. The other districts (over six) floods “normally” when the typhoons come. [$5Billion was not enough to solve flooding for the entire city. Ang mahal!!!]