The NDRRMC headquarters in Camp Aguinaldo (Photo from NDRRMC)
MANILA, Philippines 鈥斅� The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) on Wednesday said it is ready to replace the National Task Force Against COVID-19 (NTF).
This came after the Department of Health (DOH) announced that it will use the NDRRMC as its platform, effectively replacing the NTF, after Malaca帽ang said the DOH is reconstituting the member agencies of the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
鈥淗andang-handa [ang NDDRMC], kasi ang NTF at NDRRMC pare-pareho 鈥榶ung bumubuong mga ahensiya niyan at 鈥榶ung chairperson ng NTF ay 鈥榶ung chairperson din ng NDRRMC,鈥� said NDRRMC Executive Director Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad in interview over TeleRadyo.
(The NDDRMC is ready, because the same agencies make up the NTF and the NDRRMC, and the鈥� chairperson of the NTF is also the chairperson of the NDRRMC.)
鈥淜umbaga 鈥榶ung pangalan pinalitan lang, at DOH pa rin ang mangunguna sa grupo ng ahensya na 鈥榶an dahil ito ay problema na dulot ng related sa health,鈥� said Jalad.
(So it basically means the name has just been changed, and DOH will still lead that group of agencies because it is a health-related problem.)
Jalad explained that under the law, the chairperson of the NDRRMC is the current Department of Defense (DND) officer-in-charge Jose Faustino Jr.
However, the DOH, DND, and other agencies participating in the council will still discuss the specifics of the NDRRMC鈥檚 final structure, according to Jalad.
He then assured the public that the NDRRMC can handle both general disasters and COVID-19-related issues despite its new function.
鈥淎ng kinakailangan lang diyan 鈥榶ung mga department secretaries ay magtalaga ng mga focal person na tututok sa iba鈥檛 ibang aspeto,鈥� said Jalad.
(All that is needed is for the department secretaries to appoint focal persons who will focus on various aspects.)
鈥淗alimabawa, for the pandemic, iba 鈥榶ung itututok nila sa pandemic, para sa karaniwang disasters natin iba naman ang tututok,鈥� he added.
(For example, a focal person for pandemic issues and a focal person for common disaster issues.)
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