Pushes transfer of airport from Tacloban to Ormoc

MANILA - President Benigno Aquino III on Tuesday defended anew his administration's response in the aftermath of super typhoon "Yolanda" during a graduation program of local government planners from provinces affected by the storm.

In his speech, Aquino cited positive reviews made by foreigners on how government responded.

While not addressing it directly, Aquino's remarks on Yolanda came as his preferred successor Mar Roxas was drawing flak for a comic book depicting him as a hero during the storm.

LOOK: Comic book claims Roxas was a 'hero' during Yolanda

"During the Asia-Europe Meeting Manila Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction and Management in 2014, Kristalina Georgieva, the then EU Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, said that while there is still much work to be done, what we achieved in the immediate aftermath of the storm was remarkable and a lesson for the global community.

"The World Bank's Country Director for the Philippines at the time, Motoo Konishi, also said that our response to Yolanda 'set a new standard on how to shrink the time between the disaster hitting, relief work being carried out, moving on to early recovery, and then to reconstruction,'" Aquino said.

He said his administration exercised "healthy impatience" in dealing with recovery efforts, adding that he is aware there is still a lot of work to do. He emphasized that to "build back better" entails building infrastructure that could withstand storms.

"Nevertheless, our administration has always approached our continuing recovery from Yolanda with a healthy impatience. More than anyone else, we are aware that there are so many more houses to build, roads and bridges to repair, and seaports to fix. In fact, I often call in my Cabinet so I can receive regular updates on our progress, or lack thereof, and briefings about the issues we have to overcome to further accelerate the recovery process," he said.

MOVING TACLOBAN AIRPORT

He also defended the proposal to move Tacloban airport to Ormoc, saying that the current location of the airport has proven to be vulnerable to storm surges.

"There is no scientifically sound way this particular airport [could be] invulnerable to the next storm surge. The conclusion is that the airport therefore must be moved, which entails quite a thorough study. After all, the current alternative in Ormoc is also vulnerable, given the same conditions," he said.

"Of course, constructing a new airport will bring development to a different area, while making Tacloban less central to the local economy. That, of course, breeds local resistance, but in this case, logic has to triumph over sentimentalism and emotion, because we have to ensure that this basic facility-vital to any relief work-has to be always available."

A total of 146 provincial, city, and municipal planners from the so-called Yolanda corridor graduated from the Development Academy of the Philippines with a master's degree in Public Management major in Local Governance and Development Program. The program was funded by the USAID with the objective of providing LGU planners with the necessary skills in disaster risk reduction and climate change adaptation. US Ambassador Philip Goldberg was among the guests.

READ: Roxas: Nothing wrong with 'Yolanda' comics