Remember Ondoy-San Roque Dam flood

By Ermin Garcia Jr.

NOW that the victory celebrations all over the place are quieting down, it’s time for both the re-elected and outgoing local executives to buckle down to some serious work to fend off another potential calamity coming their way.

I’m talking about the onset of the La Niña phenomenon, it’s potentially horrendous damage to the province possibly exceeding that of Pepeng’s last October 2009! Taking the cue from El Niño that raised temperatures exceedingly high, dried up wells and parched lands across the region over a long period, La Nina will likely try to outdo El Niño in the months ahead.

For Guv Spines, it would be well for him, for everyone’s sake – they who voted him for another term – to call in the operators of San Roque Dam for a review of the facility’s touted “protocol”, the bane of eastern and central Pangasinan.

It will be recalled that with the exception of the class suit filed by the irrepressible former Justice Teddy Regino et al., none of the dam officials who were responsible for the October flooding have been sued, dismissed or officially sanctioned or admonished at the very least by the Arroyo government. I also don’t recall Guv Spines finally following up on his threat to sue the officials of the San Roque Multi-Purpose Project to seek compensation for the multi-million damages they caused property owners.  The same officials remain in their posts and God knows what’s in store for us.

* * * * *

Given the Pinoy’s notorious proclivity to keep a short memory, conveniently and easily forgetting past events that scarred our lives, caring to remember only when another tragedy of the same or worse proportion occurs, I believe it’d be useful to recall the tragedy that befell us to prepare us for the next.

First, let’s recall who were named by Espino administration as the main culprits behind the Pepeng onslaught.

There were the National Power Corporation (Napocor) that owns the San Roque dam and spillway, the San Roque Power Corporation (SRPC) that owns and operates the power generating facilities.

There were also Napocor’s Flood Forecasting and Warning System for Dam Operations (FFWSDO) and the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) that dictate the volume of water to be released by specifying the appropriate spillway gate openings to SRPC” based on weather and river data.

Remember the assertion of both Dennis Gana, spokesperson of Napocor, and Alex Palada, division manager of the flood forecasting and warning system for dam operations of Napocor, before the Senate investigation panel  that they would again do the same thing that caused the unprecedented flooding if the same situation arises? That they would keep two spillways open until San Roque reaches its normal level of 280 meters above sea level?

Let’s push the ‘refresh button’ on our computers and revisit the images of houses being washed away, families scrambling to safety, farmers despairing over their lost crops, storeowners desperately trying to salvage ruined items, etc to ‘refresh’ our perspective on what happened, what should have been done and what we need to do to prepare ourselves.

The incumbent town executives of the towns ravaged by the Pepeng-San Roque Dam flood surely can still recall which areas were most vulnerable to rivers that overflowed. Plans for reinforcements should start from there if nothing had been done since.

The heroism displayed by hundreds of volunteers and government workers must not all be in vain. These same heroes may be the next victims who would lose their lives and properties to the next rampage of flood waters.

* * * * *

POTENTIAL CRISIS. Speaking of Justice Teddy Regino, he had this to say about the brouhaha over the appointment of Associate Justice Renato Corona as chief justice and the subsequent oath-taking of President-apparent Noynoy Aquino.

If the situation worsens and someone finally decides to file impeachment cases against the Supreme Court associate justices who gave President Arroyo the green light to appoint a chief justice in spite of the appointment ban as provided in the Constitution, there will likely be a constitutional crisis that will arise from the vacancies. Yes, vacancies because they will likely be removed by an impartial Congress.

Justice Teddy, who has been the energetic pointman of retired justices in the country for so long, said the common sentiment of the group is that the associate justices’ decision is a culpable violation of the Constitution.

He said just as Congress cannot act on their salaries and their terms of office since it directly benefits them, the High Court magistrates cannot rule on issues that directly favor them, in this case, their appointment to the highest judiciary post at anytime without regard time-honored constitutional provision!

What’s happening to our country, Justice Teddy?

Back to Homepage

Share your Comments or Reactions

comments

Powered by Facebook Comments