President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. extended condolences and offered prayers to the victims of storms "Kristine" and "Leon" during Friday's observance of All Saints' Day.
In his personal vlog streamed on his social media accounts, Marcos expressed sympathy to the thousands of families affected by the recent tropical cyclones.
He also lamented the billions of pesos in damages incurred by the agriculture and infrastructure sectors due to severe weather.
“Matinding pagsubok ang sinasapit ng marami sa ating mga kababayan dahil sa nagdadaang bagyo. Kaya’t ngayong Undas, bukod sa ating mga yumaong mahal sa buhay, ay isama na rin natin ang ating panalangin para sa mga biktima at nasalanta ng sakunang ito (Many of our fellow Filipinos are facing severe trials because of the previous typhoons. This All Saints' Day, aside from our departed loved ones, let us also pray for the victims of these natural calamities),” Marcos said.
Meanwhile, Marcos assured that the government would continue assisting the calamity-stricken families until they can return to normalcy.
Reiterating the need to fortify communities against the impacts of climate change, Marcos emphasized that the government is striving to address the country's shifting weather patterns.
Marcos noted the country’s high risk of disasters due to climate change, underscoring the importance of improving infrastructure planning and bolstering disaster risk reduction efforts.
“Kaya kailangan natin maging magaling sa larangan na ito. Disaster risk reduction, both the public at saka private sector, para naman mabawasan ang mga napapahamak sa mga ganitong uri ng sakuna (We have to excel in this field. Disaster risk reduction, both in the public and private sectors, to reduce casualties from these types of disasters),” he said.
“Kaya kailangan natin maging magaling sa larangan na ito. Disaster risk reduction, both the public at saka private sector, para naman mabawasan ang mga napapahamak sa mga ganitong uri ng sakuna (We have to be good in this field. Disaster risk reduction, both the public and private sector, in order to reduce the casualties from these types of disasters),” he said.
“Kaya naman maraming pagbabago sa pagpaplano ng mga imprastruktura na pinapatayo natin. Iyan ang mga kailangang gawin (That’s why there are a lot of changes when it comes to planning our infrastructure. That's what we need to do),” he added.
Marcos also said the government is ready to extend all necessary assistance to those affected by the recent typhoons.
“Naririnig namin ang inyong saklolo at ginagawa namin ang lahat upang mailagay kayo sa mas mabuting kalagayan (We hear your plea and we are doing everything to put you in a better situation),” Marcos assured.
“Sa isang Bagong Pilipinas, lalo pa natin pagbubutihin ang ating pagtugon sa hamon ng climate change (In the New Philippines, we will further improve our response to the challenge of climate change),” he added.