Sen. Robinhood “Robin” C. Padilla is seeking to hold Senate hearings to review and improve the government’s information drive on its preparations and responses to the crisis caused by El Nino.
Padilla on Monday filed Senate Resolution 987, directing the Senate Committee on Public Information and Mass Media – which he chairs – to conduct the inquiry in aid of legislation.
“Conducting an information and awareness campaign is necessary to ensure that the public is well-equipped with the necessary knowledge to undertake precautionary measures on the impact of this weather condition,” he said in his resolution.
“Filipinos must be informed of up-to-date and necessary preparations and responses of the national and local government, as the country has been taking the brunt of dangerous levels of heat index, mainly attributed to the El Nino phenomenon,” he added.
Also, Padilla noted President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had commanded government agencies to initiate a whole-of-government approach to address the effects of El Nino and the looming effects of La Nina.
He pointed out El Nino has not only had detrimental effects on agriculture but also threaten other key sectors like the environment, energy, education, health, and public safety.
Citing data from various agencies, he said El Nino has triggered droughts in at least 37 areas, a dry spell in 22 areas, and dry conditions in 12 areas nationwide – and caused at least P1.23 billion in losses to agriculture.
“It cannot be denied that implementing a comprehensive public information drive is necessary to apprise the affected population of the government’s projects, programs and activities to help them cope with the adverse effects of this crisis,” Padilla said.
