Malacañang on Tuesday urged the public to heed President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s call to conserve water and collect rainwater in pails in preparation for the potential effects of Super El Niño.
“Hindi po ito biro. Sineseryoso ng Pangulo ang magaganap at nagaganap na at maaaring mag-worsen sa mga susunod na buwan (This is no joke. The President is taking seriously the situation that is unfolding—and which could worsen in the coming months),” Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said in a briefing in Malacañang.
“Ang bawat pagtalakay dito, ang bawat mensahe, ang bawat suggestion, ang bawat mga binibigay na aral sa atin ng gobyerno at ng Pangulo, ito ay dapat na sineseryoso (Every discussion, every message, every suggestion, and every piece of guidance provided to us by the government and the President must be taken seriously),” Castro also said.
The President on Tuesday convened members of Task Force El Niño to review the current situation and the government’s contingencies. On Sunday, Marcos urged the public to buy buckets and start harvesting rainwater for household needs.
Castro added that Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rex Gatchalian will produce an instructional video demonstrating how to filter collected rainwater for appropriate use.
Meanwhile, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said the agency has intensified relief and response operations for communities severely affected by the dry spell.
DSWD data as of October 13 showed that 233,930 families or 561,757 individuals across 3,893 barangays have been affected in Region I (Ilocos Region), Region II (Cagayan Valley), Region IV-A (Calabarzon), Region IV-B (Mimaropa), Region V (Bicol), Region VII (Central Visayas), Region VIII (Eastern Visayas), Region XIII (Caraga), and the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR).
The agency has distributed more than P765.58 million worth of assistance, including 52,512 family food packs (FFPs), 4,967 other food items, and 2,300 non-food items (NFIs). Cash transfers totaling P732.308 million were also provided to 77,260 beneficiaries under the Unified Package for Livelihoods, Industry, Food, and Transport (UPLIFT) Assistance – Emergency Cash Transfer (ECT).
Dumlao noted that the agency maintains a standby stockpile of more than 4.4 million family food packs, 341,449 NFIs, and 216,273 ready-to-eat food (RTEF) boxes, along with over P336.2 million in standby funds.