Early last month, President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino launched his answer to the country’s perennial problem of flooding, which of course he claims his predecessors have failed to address, the Project Noah, short for Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards.
In his speech, Noynoy declared that the days of uncertainty in the face of severe weather would now be a thing of the past with the real-time warnings and information that Project Noah provides.
“Project Noah would serve as the Philippines’ ark against deluge. Tutuldukan na natin ang mga problema ng pagbaha dito sa ating bayan.  We would put an end to problems of flooding in our country,” Noynoy said or something to that effect.
“Hindi na puwede ang ‘bahala na,’ sawa na tayo sa kaba,” the President said.
“With accurate and enough information, we would gear Filipinos toward sufficient readiness,” he added.
Incidentally, Project Noah’s launch was held in Marikina City, which was one of the worst hit by floods when Typhoon Ondoy ravaged the country in September 2009.
Aside from providing on-time warnings on severe weather from the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration, Noynoy said Project Noah will also issue warnings related to geohazards from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology.
Just check on the website, Noynoy said, type your location, and you would already know the weather condition, how heavy the rain would be in your area. And this was even echoed by Palace Spokesman Edwin Lacierda saying people should just follow the twitter account of Pagasa for any updates on the weather condition.
Hello! Mr. President, did you check on the number of households who have access to the internet? Tell that to the poor fisherfolk who have to brave the rampaging waves in the open seas just to secure a few catch he and his family could share on the dining table.
Tell that to poor family who were buried alive in a landslide in Barangay Commonwealth in Quezon City. Tell that to the thousands of families living besides the river banks and other flood-prone areas who were forced to be evacuated in make-shift evacuation centers.
And since you cannot believe with your own eyes the gravity of the problem Typhoon Gener and the monsoon rains have brought the country the past two weeks, you have to chastise the media for reporting that almost 50 percent of the metropolis is now under water. Maybe not Mr. President. Maybe it’s almost the entire national capital region.
You also berated the poor families for refusing to be evacuated to higher or dry grounds. Of course that is expected of them. For how do they expect to be treated at the evacuation centers? And what will happen to their houses and all of what’s inside them which they have strived for years to put up.
Mr. President, you bragged to put an end to all these flooding and all the problems attributed to it. But just how could you do it when you have cancelled all the flood control projects approved during the previous administration?
Ironically, every time you say “tutuldulkan (your favorite expression since your inauguration) mo ang problema,” the opposite happens.
You said “tutuldukan mo ang korupsyon sa gobyerno,” but what is happening at the SBMA, the MWSS, the Bureau of Customs and other agencies? And to think they are now being managed by your own appointees, all supposed adherent of your daang matuwid concept of governance.
You said “tutuldukan mo na ang kulturang wang-wang.” Maybe you have succeeded in this area but then, the wang-wangs have been replaced by sweepers which are now being employed by no less than one of your Cabinet Secretaries, residing in Ferndale, a posh village in Quezon City. This particular Cabinet official employs four motorcycle units to act as sweepers for his convoy of four SUVs.
And just recently, you said “tutuldukan mo na ang problema ng pagbaha.” So, what do we have now, the entire metropolis deep under floodwaters.
Mr. President, wouldn’t it be better “kung tutuldukan mo na lang ang pagyayabang mo,” and just start acting on the peoples immediate concern? Most of the time you open your mouth, “kuryente inaabot mo eh.”
I believe the people would be better off then. But for the meantime, maybe we would have to wait for the real Noah to drop by and anchor his ark to save us all from this deluge for which our good-for-nothing president has virtually done nothing.