Kahandaan at Pagtugon sa Sakuna, Tungkulin ng Bawat Isa

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Quickly! What do Filipinos celebrate during July aside from Filipino-American Friendship Day?

If you are scrambling for an answer to that question, you are not alone. During my elementary days, Filipino-American Friendship Day was the only occasion people bother talking about every July. Until I met my best friend, and he gave me another thing to celebrate during the seventh month of the year – his birthday.

However, in August 1999, President Joseph Ejercito Estrada, by way of Executive Order No. 137, declared July of every year as National Disaster Consciousness Month (NDCM) in the hopes of increasing the awareness of every Filipino on natural and man-made disasters for a better appreciation of the government’s disaster preparedness programs.

In observance of NDCM, the Office of Civil Defense (OCD), the implementing arm of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), launched an Office-wide theme writing contest on 1 June 2016. Fortunately, I submitted an entry to the competition and won.

This year’s theme – Kahandaan at Pagtugon sa Sakuna, Tungkulin ng Bawat Isa (which roughly translates to preparing for and responding to disasters is everyone’s duty) – was inspired by Mr. Tsukasa Katsube of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) after hearing him explain how Japan dealt with the Great Japan Earthquake and Tsunami of 2011 during his visit to the Philippines in April 2016.

According to Katsube, only a fraction (I cannot remember the exact figures. I think he said something between 10% - 20%) of the survivors were rescued by government responders. The rest of the country’s citizens managed to take care of themselves or save another person’s life. As per Katsube, this was made possible by educating the masses about the nature of disasters, as well as teaching them how to prepare and respond to such phenomenon.  

In a country situated within the Pacific Ring of Fire and the Pacific Typhoon Belt, and threatened by the possibility of the Big One, it makes a lot of sense for Filipinos to emulate the Japanese and start taking disasters more seriously. Although the government is responsible for ensuring the safety and security of the people during trying times, each individual in the Philippines should understand that the people working behind the government can and will become victims to disasters as well. And when things go bad, YOU WILL BE ON YOUR OWN.

That is why more Filipinos should start paying attention to government initiatives like the Nationwide Simultaneous Earthquake Drill to help improve the disaster resilience of the people, and ultimately, the country.

So in the spirit of National Disaster Consciousness Month, I encourage everyone to read a book, visit a website or talk to an expert regarding disasters and how to deal with them. It does not matter what action you take. In the end, all that matters is you are doing something to equip yourself with knowledge or skills that may save you or someone else's life during critical moments.