THE Office of the Civil Defense (OCD) called on the members of Congress to have a Magna Carta for Rescue Workers to fully safeguard the welfare of rescuers and ensure appropriate wages and benefits for them.
The call was also supported by Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. as he believes that it will enhance the skill level of the provincial, city and municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office (DRRMO).
In his message, Undersecretary Raymundo Ferrer, administrator of the Office of the Civil Defense, said that it is time to give proper care to the rescuers in relation to the tragedy that happened to the five Bulacan PDRRMO rescuers Narciso Calayag Jr., Troy Justine Agustin , George Agustin, Marby Bartolome and Jerson Lopez Resureccion. The five died while performing their duty amid the onslaught of Super Typhoon “Karding” on September 25.
Ferrer said this should be the counterpart of the proposal to establish a Department of Disaster Resilient so that the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office of the Philippines can strengthen its capability and become completely modern.
In a press briefing at the wake of the Bulacan fallen heroes at the capitol gymnasium, Abalos told Gov. Daniel Fernando that he will ask Congress to amend the existing National Building Code to match the intensity of typhoons due to climate change.