Marcos wants National Disaster Risk Council under his office

As typhoons become much stronger and calamities more destructive, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. believes putting the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council under the Office of the President would streamline disaster response efforts.

This move, he said, will bolster disaster response initiatives and rehabilitation projects in response to the destruction wreaked by recent typhoons and earthquakes.

"We will put the national disaster response team under the Office of the President. And I think that we are headed in that direction because of the weather that we are suffering now from the effects of climate change," Marcos said during his visit in Tacloban City.

He added: "I think that overall, we can say that the disaster response has been a good one. However, I believe that there are ways that we can make it even more streamlined."

The President reflected on the thousands of deaths from super typhoon "Yolanda" as he graced the 9th-year commemoration of the killer typhoon in Tacloban City.

"The tragedy of 'Yolanda' continues… I think it is important that we come to these commemorations because it is also a demonstration, a manifestation of the strength and the courage of Filipinos," Marcos said in his speech at the Holy Cross Memorial Garden in the Eastern Visayas town.

"(This is) to remind ourselves that Filipinos are brave, that Filipinos are kind, and that Filipinos will conquer all, especially if it is for their community, for their families, and for the land that they love," he added.

The commemoration, he added, is a way to keep the memories of the people, who untimely died during the typhoon, alive.

"I come here because I must commemorate that uncounted dead that up to now we do not know how many that number is. We must come to these commemorations so that we will remember those who were told not to remember," Marcos said, adding that the count of the casualties was stopped and there were still thousands out there.

"For those countless thousands, we come here, we commemorate. Because if we no longer commemorate them, their memory dies. It is only up to us to keep that memory alive," he added.

Marcos is hopeful that the success of Tacloban in rebuilding itself following the monster disaster will give inspiration to other cities that "even if there are tragedies and disasters in other places, we know the Filipino spirit will never be quelled."

"The Filipino spirit will always burn bright and bring back normal life to their communities. That is what we commemorate," he said.

Several local government units in the Eastern Visayas region suspended work in the government and classes at all levels on 8 November to remember the people who perished when the killer storm ravaged the region in 2013.

The city government of Tacloban was the first local government unit to issue an executive order suspending classes and work to allow its residents to participate in activities, which is meant to commemorate the catastrophe and recognize the resilience of the people of the city.

Since 2013, the government has been implementing the "Yolanda" Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan and providing affected families with food assistance, cash-for-work programs, and Emergency Shelter Assistance.

"Yolanda" claimed more than 6,300 lives, injured more than 30,000 people, and affected more than three million families.

Considered one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded in the world, "Yolanda" destroyed more than 1.1 million homes and properties and registered P90 billion in damages.

Romualdez cites Marcos

House Speaker Martin Romualdez said Marcos was one of the first public officials to respond and provide aid to the people of Eastern Visayas in the aftermath of "Yolanda."

Romualdez made the statement during a memorial for those who perished nine years.

On Tuesday, Marcos led the distribution of aid in the province and led the wreath-laying ceremony at a mass grave at the Holy Cross Memorial Garden in Basper Village, Tacloban City, where 2,273 bodies were buried.

"Our honored guest today is in fact one of the first to bring help to our people. His presence brought reassurance to many of us that we are not alone," he said. "And throughout the years, he has been with us, not only in remembrance of our loss but in keeping alive the lessons we learned in that tragic moment so we could ensure it won't happen again."

The assistance includes 100 laptops from the Department of Information and Communications Technology, which will be then granted to the Department of Education-identified beneficiaries under the Tech4ED program.

Likewise, the Department of Health donated 20 ambulances, which they turned over to local government units under the Health Facilities Enhancement Program.

The Department of Agriculture distributed P5,000 each to around 1,200 farmer-beneficiaries under the Rice Farmer Financial Assistance program for financial aid to citizens.

The DA also provided disinfection trucks to the provincial government of Southern Leyte and the municipality of Allen in Northern Samar.

Some 300 beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, on the other hand, received cash assistance through the agency's program Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations.

Around 200 residents received P5,250 cash each from the Department of Labor and Employment's Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers.

Yolanda's lessons made Phl stronger

Romualdez said nine years after "Yolanda" battered the country, the lessons learned from the disaster have continued to guide the country's response to disasters and only highlight the Filipino's ability to band together and help one another during times of crisis.

"Yolanda," dubbed a Category 5 typhoon and one of the most powerful tropical cyclones ever recorded, leveled most of whatever structure stood in Eastern Visayas in 2013.

"We have recovered fully from "Yolanda," and this is a testament to the Filipinos' resiliency," he said. "Whatever calamity we will face — and surely there will be in the future — we can overcome because of this resiliency and our sincere compassion toward our fellow Filipinos."

Marcos visits Leyte

After visiting Antique and Tacloban City, Marcos Jr. flew to Palo town in Leyte to lead in the distribution of assistance to various sectors amid the pandemic and high inflation.

The President assured the beneficiaries that the government will support them until they get back on their feet.

"Until that happens, we as your government are here to help and we will not leave until we see that you are able to support yourselves because that has been our priority to improve the economy," Marcos said in his remark during the distribution of government assistance in Palo, Leyte.

"We are going in the right direction. So that is what we are putting at the top of our priority list is the continuing assistance," he said.

The President led the distribution of monetary aid to recipients of the Department of Agriculture's Rice Farmer Financial Assistance Program, beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development's Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation Program, and Department of Labor and Employment's TUPAD Emergency Employment Program.

A unit of disinfection truck, an ambulance, and laptops were also turned over to the local government and different agencies.

Marcos also distributed cash assistance to micro, small and medium enterprises, sari-sari store owners, as well as manual laborers.