I'm really trying to understand why the people affected by the typhoon "Falcon" (international name: "Meari") are complaining about the government's efforts to help the victims that were ravaged by the storm last weekend. What's more some of them blame the government of their current predicament.
All right, let's take a case in point.
I am not a big fan of the government. I am NOT. It's so corrupt and unorganized and sometimes lacks common sense and logic. For example, they know that the country is within the typhoon belt/ area where around 20++ typhoons pass by in a year and we're also a part of monsoon Asia so it is therefore understandable that heavy rains and floods are expected throughout the year. So what do you do?
Meh, nothing.... The government is known to take action ONLY after a disaster has struck and what's more is that what the efforts they do are like Band-aids that only treat what was damaged - what I mean is short term, sub-par little patches that are bound to pull off sooner or later.
It was not until the tropical storm "Ondoy", a couple of years ago, that the government took note and made efforts to put up preventive measures so that they would not be caught unprepared again. But as far as I know this was only in one city and was not implemented on the rest of the Metro nor on the rest of the country.
Come on, don't give excuses that you don't have enough funds, nor enough people or that you don't have enough facilities. Just cut the extra moolah you give to those government officials that do nothing and to those projects that are not in the best interest of the country. There are also people out there who are willing to help the government in their efforts to build a wonderful country (like me). But the way things are run is putting us off.
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But the government is not the only one to blame. The irresponsibility and lack of discipline and respect of the people at large are also a big chunk of the reason why. What am I talking about here?
Deforestation i.e. illegal logging, mismanagement of natural resources, and irresponsible disposal of garbage - to name a few - these are the main reasons why the problem escalated this far. And don't you dare put global warming in the equation like what one of the debaters in an inter-university debate I attended this afternoon said. Look, honey, while global warming is indeed happening and may have contributed to the might of the storm and the floods that followed, but the consequences could have been surmounted if you learned from past experiences and knew how to adapt and adopt to the situation.
A/N: Even if the problem is magnified in the city because of I'm living in it, the following is applicable to all places:
Many people are crying foul over the miserable conditions in the evacuation centers and bemoaning the loss of their homes; but while I sympathize with their plight, all I can say is that it was their fault in the first place.
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| Photo source. Dennis Villegas: Reportage on people, events and places
dennisvillegas.blogspot.com
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Why is there garbage in the water?
Because people living on the edge of these waterways are so lazy to properly dispose of their garbage that they just throw it out the window. Even shit is floating there.
Some might say that they do not know enough to learn the consequences of their actions. I say: Puh-lease. Go read Jose Rizal's Indolence of the Filipinos.
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Oh! And another thing, there's a point mentioned above that is not only for the government but also for the masses: given the numerous bagyo (storm/typhoon/cyclone) that sweep the country over the past years, don't you think that the people might have enough experience to know what to do to prepare for such an event? To take a moment and think: Gee, this was not really a problem before when non-biodegradable materials are wishful thinking and we still worship nature, what are we doing that is causing this catastrophe? I am not saying that you need to worship nature and dance around the trees but there are three words that should be in your vocabulary: R-E-S-P-O-N-S-I-B-I-L-I-T-Y, R-E-S-P-E-C-T and D-I-S-C-I-P-L-I-N-E.
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While the government have the responsibility to care for the state and to attend to the welfare of its people, the people in turn must not act like complete Juan Tamads and be little hatchlings that wait for mommy-bird to catch the worm, chew it and regurgitate it into their mouths.
Both of you, grow up!
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