PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has signed several measures into law, including the Declaration of a State of Imminent Disaster Act, which establishes a legal framework for declaring disasters before they occur based on scientific forecasts and assessments.
On September 12, Marcos signed Republic Act 12287 which authorizes the President — upon the recommendation of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) — to declare a state of imminent disaster over a cluster of barangays, municipalities, cities, provinces, and regions “in anticipation of a highly probable disaster with projected catastrophic impact.”
Under this law, local chief executives, upon the recommendation of the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction Management Councils (RDRRMCs), may also declare a state of imminent disaster through an executive order in their respective jurisdictions.
The NDRRMC or the RDRRMCs shall conduct a pre-disaster risk assessment in anticipation of the “highly probable disaster with projected catastrophic impacts,” which shall serve as the basis for the declaration.
Among those to be considered in the declaration are the adverse effect of the highly probable disaster on the population, particularly vulnerable groups of the community, and on significant sectors such as, but not limited to, agricultural, business, and industrial sectors; and the local risk profiles, institutional capacities, and potential for occurrence of cascading hazards.
The law also states that only three days will be allowed as sufficient lead time for the national or local government to implement anticipatory action interventions and this may be extended to five days. These actions include issuing public advisories, mobilizing inter-agency response teams, prepositioning relief goods, enforcing pre-emptive or forced evacuations, deploying accredited volunteers, and rolling out social amelioration programs for indigent and vulnerable groups.
The declaration of a state of imminent disaster may be lifted if the NDRRMC or RDRRMCs recommend the immediate lifting of the declaration “if the latest pre-disaster risk assessment states that the projected impacts are not met,” or upon the occurrence of the hazard.
To fund implementation of RA 12287, the law states that national government agencies must allocate portions of their budgets for anticipatory measures, while the National DRRM Fund may also be tapped.
Local governments must integrate anticipatory action measures into their Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Plans, funded by their Local DRRM Funds and unspent Special Trust Funds.
If the predicted hazard does not occur, unused funds will revert to the Special Trust Fund for LGUs or to the National Treasury for agencies.
Relief goods already procured must be also stored by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) or the concerned local social welfare offices.
The law also penalizes the malicious spread of false disaster information and the manipulation of assessment reports to justify an improper declaration of a state of imminent disaster with offenders facing fines between P50,000 to P500,000; imprisonment of six to 12 years; and perpetual disqualification from public office if they are government officials.
RA 12287 also directs the creation of a Congressional Oversight Committee composed of members from both houses of Congress that will monitor the law’s implementation.
It also directs the NDRRMC to draft implementing rules and regulations within 60 days.
The other measures signed into law includes RA 12288, or Career Progression System for Public School Teachers and School Leaders Act, which institutionalizes the career progression system for public school teachers and school leaders to promote professional development and career advancement; laws that convert extension campuses in Jordan and San Lorenzo towns in Guimaras (RA 12286) and Balamban and Medellin towns in Cebu (RAs 12285 and 12286) into regular schools; and the laws establishing a College of Medicines in the Sultan Kudarat State University in Tacurong (RA 12283), and an Arts and Trades School at the Zamboanga Del Sur Polytechnic State College in Pagadian City (RA 12282).
Marcos also signed laws that renamed barangay New Alabang Village in Muntinlupa as Barangay Ayala Alabang (RA 12281); and created barangays Pulung Bulu in San Fernando in Pampanga (RA 12280); and barangay Friendship Village in Norzagaray in Bulacan; eight laws that declared local holidays in Misamis Oriental (RA 12275), Sta. Cruz in Occidental Mindoro (RA 12274), Navotas City (RA 12271), and Sulop (RA 12273), Sta. Cruz (RA 12272), Matanao (RA 12270), Malalag (RA 12269), and Kiblawan (RA 12268) all in Davao del Sur.
The other laws are RAs 12267 and 12266 that created four additional Regional Trial Courts in Coron, Brooke’s Point and Roxas, all in Palawan; and one RTC branch in Labason in Zamboanga Del Norte.
All laws were published in the Official Gazette on September 16.
