An environmental group in Davao City has urged barangay leaders in the city to play a major role in relocating their constituents who persist in living in flood and landslide prone areas.
Interface Development Interventions (IDIS) program coordinator Chinkee Peliño-Golle said relocation is better if it comes from the barangays because they already identified the risk of the place and the number of those affected.
“It’s time for them (barangay) to develop major or medium-relocation plan especially to the barangays who have flood prone and landslide prone areas,” she said.
Peliño-Golle said that for many years the City Planning and Development Office is doing the relocation but it is clueless on those actually affected unless the barangays provide the information.
She said the city have prepared relocation site in Barangay Los Amigos in Tugbok district for the affected people but the problem they have complains on the area since its far from their source of livelihood.
“This is a challenge for the barangays, to identify possible areas for on-site relocation so that the people who will be affected will not be displaced from their livelihood, “ she said.
“The barangays, I hope really help the City Planning and Development Office identify a place within their area for the establishment of on-site reolocation for their constituents,” Peliño-Golle added.
Peliño-Golle said this step will lessen the number of affected people during rainy season that usually cause floods and landslides.
“Buhaton unta nila not just, dili lang i-consider ang pulitika noh but for the safety of their constituents (Hopefully, they will do it not just for politcs but for the safety of its constituents),” she said.
She said this is a lot more better than doing evacuation and extend relief assistance everytime there is flood and landslides.
The suggestion is part of the mitigating measures for disaster risk reduction management of the city.
If the barangays could not do the relocation plan for the meantime, Peliño-Golle said they can train its communities for them to be ready for disaster.
“It is important to a lot a budget for the community capacity empowerment because if the cannot solve yet the relocation and resettle their constituents living in landslide prone and flood prone, at least they will be trained what to do in times of calamity,” she said.
She also said that these people should also follow orders from authorities for pre-emptive evacuation for their safety.
