DILG Annual Report CY 2015 - LML final

The newly purchased DRRM equipment in Guagua, Pampanga (left) while MRRDM Officer Aldwin
Mallari demonstrates the proper usage of the DRMM equipment.
READY FOR DISASTER
“Rainy season is almost near and when it comes, people in Guagua will have to ride in banca,”
said Mayor Dante Torres of Guagua, Pampanga.
The municipality seemingly adopts its name vis-à-vis its location, for Guagua means “water”. It is
located on a flat terrain surrounded with fish ponds. The Guagua River, which is the catch basin for three
other major rivers in the Northern Luzon, is only 30 meters away from the municipal hall. This makes the
municipality highly prone to flooding, liquefaction, and even ground shaking. In the past, Guagua had
experienced severe flooding and was isolated from adjacent municipalities.
This explains why the residents together with the key officials have always wanted to purchase
life- saving equipment. For several years, this plan was always included in the annual budget allocation
but was never attained the prices had already increased by the time the funds were available.
This long-time plan just materialized when the LGU’s proposal through the DILG Bottom-up
Budgeting (BuB)-Other Projects was released with funds for the purchase equipment brand new DRRM
equipment.
MDRRM Officer Aldwin Mallari along with the team members demonstrated the proper use of
each equipment. “The BuB Project is 101% very good since we are finally able to purchase the calamity
equipment that we needed for so long,” said Mr. Mallari.
Now, Guagua has the complete package of active, knowledgeable, 24/7 functioning MDRRM
team, equipment, and facility just in case another disaster strikes again. “Now we have peace of mind
when there is forced evacuation since we are now 80-85% ready,” Mayor Torres stated.
D e p a r t m e n t o f t h e I n t e r i o r a n d L o c a l G o v e r n m e n t
ANNUAL REPORT 2015 37