RA 10121: The PH's disaster management law is up for review

What will lawmakers be looking into as they review the Philippine Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Act of 2010

Aika Rey
@reyaika
Published 8:30 AM, May 30, 2015
Updated 10:13 AM, November 23, 2015

COMMUNITY RESILIENCE. RA 10121 emphasizes the power of LGUs in disaster

management.

MANILA, Philippines — As Republic Act No. 10121 turns 5 this year, the congressional
oversight committee is conducting a "sunset review" of the law.

Republic Act No. 10121, known as the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management (DRRM) Act of 2010, is an act mandated to strengthen disaster
management in the Philippines, a country prone to natural hazards.

Signed on May 27, 2010, it aims to develop a framework and roll out resources that will
enable the national government, the local government units, and other stakeholders to
build communities that can survive disasters.

RA 10121 repealed Presidential Decree 1566 that created the National Disaster
Coordinating Council (NDCC). This changed from the NDCC to the National Disaster
Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) as the overseeing body.

It also emphasizes strengthening local governments and the importance of local

communities. It institutionalizes the participation of civil society organizations (CSOs)
and the private sector.

Five years into implementation, RA 10121 is due for evaluation by the congressional
oversight committee. In consultation with sectors and agencies, the committee will
assess the performance and organizational structure of implementing agencies.

Here are the basic features of the law that they will be looking into.
Strengthening the DRRM System

RA 10121 makes sure that policies and plans are in place to prepare communities for
when disasters strike. Programs should increase awareness and knowledge of risks
and hazards, and preparedness for effective response and early recovery.

RA 10121 empowers regional and local disaster management bodies in terms of

responsibilities and funding.

The regional DRRM councils are tasked to coordinate, supervise, and evaluate the
activities of provincial, city, and municipal DRRMCs.

Given that there will be a huge number of councils in the regional and local levels, the
main coordinating body will be the NDRRMC. The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) helps
in the implementation of activities. (Read: FAST FACTS: The NDRRMC)

Providing framework

In making sure that we are prepared for any disaster, the NDRRMC is to formulate a
working framework centered on preparedness and reducing damage as well as
casualties.

RA 10121 says that the framework should be comprehensive — addressing different

sectors, has synergy with other agencies and most of all takes into consideration the
voice of the community.

It shall be the principal guide to all DRRM plans and activities in the country. The
framework shall be reviewed every 5 years.

Following the framework, the National DRRM Plan should contain goals and objectives
in disaster mitigation. It is the task then of the OCD to formulate and to implement this
plan.

As this function is also decentralized to the local level, it is their duty to design and
integrate their own local plans according to national, regional and provincial frameworks
and policies.

Appropriation of funds

The President approves the funds for the NDRRMC. The OCD, on the other hand, has
been allocated P1 billion under RA 10121.
Local governments are to set aside at least 5% of their estimated revenue from regular
sources for their disaster management councils. (Read: How do you use your local
disaster funds?)

Of the local disaster management fund, 30% shall be allocated as Quick Response
Fund, while the 70% shall be used for pre-disaster measures. During the onset of a
typhoon, the QRF serves as a stand-by fund for relief and recovery programs.

DRRM FUNDS. 5% from regular sources are allocated as disaster funds

The money may be used on pre-disaster preparedness programs, such as trainings,

equipment, supplies, and medicines. Premiums on calamity insurance may be paid for
post-disaster activities.

Unexpended LDRRM fund shall add up to a Special Trust Fund for the purpose of
supporting DRRM activities of the LDRRMCs within the next 5 years.

Penal clause

The following are acts that are prohibited by the law, with corresponding penalties:
INFOGRAPH. Prohibited Acts under RA No. 10121. | Graphic by Ernest Fiestan

Violators of the law shall pay a fine of not less than P50,000 or any amount not to
exceed P500,000.

In the instances of imprisonment, the convicted shall stay in prison for not less than 6
years and 1 day to more than 12 years.

If it's a corporation or an association that is found guilty of , the penalty shall be imposed
to its officers. License or accreditation of the body or the officers may be revoked as
well.

This also includes perpetual disqualification from public office if the offender is a public
official.

Foreigners who have committed the prohibited acts are to be deported without further
proceedings in addition to the penalties of RA 10121. – Rappler.com

Source: Republic Act No. 10121

FAST FACTS: The NDRRMC

(2nd UPDATE) The NDRRMC plays a major role in keeping the country safe from
disasters and ensuring quick recovery afterwards

Michael Bueza
@mikebueza
Published 2:09 PM, November 16, 2013
Updated 10:37 PM, July 22, 2017

MANILA, Philippines (2nd UPDATE) – Its name and acronym may be lengthy, but it
plays a major role in keeping the country safe from disasters and ensuring quick
recovery afterwards.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) is the
agency tasked to prepare for, and respond to, natural calamities, like typhoons and
earthquakes. It also monitors human-induced emergencies, such as armed conflicts and
maritime accidents.

The NDRRMC uses strategies to mitigate the impact of disasters and increase the
resiliency of both the national government and local government units (LGUs) in the
face of disasters.

As a policy-making body, it is assigned to formulate a national disaster risk reduction

and management (DRRM) framework that provides for a "comprehensive, all hazards,
multi-sectoral, inter-agency and community-based approach to disaster risk reduction
and management," according to Republic Act 10121, NDRRMC's enabling law.

The DRRM framework it created in June 2011 is integrated into a National Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Plan, which is implemented by the Office of Civil Defense
(OCD), under the Department of National Defense (DND). It covers 4 DRRM aspects,
namely: prevention and mitigation, preparedness, response, and rehabilitation and
recovery. (READ: RA 10121: The PH's disaster management law is up for review)

The Secretary of the Department of National Defense (DND) chairs the NDRRMC, with
the administrator of the DND Office of Civil Defense (OCD) as executive director.

Each DRRM aspect is assigned to a vice chairperson, as follows:

 Vice Chairperson for Preparedness - Secretary,

Department of the Interior and Local Government
(DILG)
 Vice Chairperson for Response - Secretary,
Department of Social Welfare and Development
(DSWD)
 Vice Chairperson for Prevention and Mitigation -
Secretary, Department of Science and Technology
(DOST)
 Vice Chairperson for Rehabilitation and Recovery -
Director-General, National Economic and Development
Authority (NEDA)

Read more about the NDRRMC and the roles of key officials in the infographics below.
The Cabinet members below are also part of the NDRRMC:

 Executive Secretary, Office of the President

 Secretary, Department of Agriculture (DA)
 Secretary, Department of Budget and Management
(DBM)
 Secretary, Department of Education (DepEd)
 Secretary, Department of Energy (DOE)
 Secretary, Department of Environment and Natural
Resources (DENR)
 Secretary, Department of Finance (DOF)
 Secretary, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA)
 Secretary, Department of Health (DOH)
 Secretary, Department of Information and
Communications Technology (DICT)
 Secretary, Department of Justice (DOJ)
 Secretary, Department of Labor and Employment
(DOLE)
 Secretary, Department of Public Works and Highways
(DPWH)
 Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry (DTI)
 Secretary, Department of Transportation (DOTr)
 Secretary, Department of Tourism (DOT)
 Press Secretary (now the Secretary, Presidential
Communications Operations Office or PCOO)

The DOTr and the DICT were included in the council in July 2017 via Executive Order
Number 32, following the reorganization of the now-defunct Department of
Transportation and Communications (DOTC).

The NDRRMC is also composed of the following:

 Secretary, Office of the Presidential Adviser on the

Peace Process (OPAPP)
 Chairperson, Commission on Higher Education
(CHED)
 Chairperson, Housing and Urban Development
Coordinating Council (HUDCC)
 Chief of Staff, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP)
 Chief, Philippine National Police (PNP)
 Secretary-General, Philippine National Red Cross
(PNRC)
  Commissioner, National Anti-Poverty Commission -
Victims of Disasters and Calamities Sector (NAPC-
VDC)
 Chairperson, National Commission on the Role of
Filipino Women (now the Philippine Commission on
Women or PCW)
 Executive Director, Climate Change Office of the
Climate Change Commission (CCC)
 President, Government Service Insurance System
(GSIS)
 President, Social Security System (SSS)
 President, Philippine Health Insurance Corporation
(PhilHealth)
 President, Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines
(ULAP)
 President, League of Provinces of the Philippines
(LPP)
 President, League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP)
 President, League of Municipalities of the Philippines
(LMP)
 President, Liga ng mga Barangay (LMB)
 Four (4) representatives from civil society
organizations (CSO)
 One (1) representative from the private sector

– Rappler.com

Sources: gov.ph, ndrrmc.gov.ph

Jalad says better to make NDRRMC chief a 'Cabinet-level' position

Stakeholders have pointed out that since the NDRRMC is merely a council, it doesn't
have the budget nor the power to make decisions on situations that require a Cabinet
rank

Aika Rey
@reyaika
Published 9:31 PM, January 29, 2020
Updated 9:31 PM, January 29, 2020
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CABINET-LEVEL POSITION? Undersecretary Ricardo Jalad, the executive director of

the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), says it's
better to make the NDRRMC chief a Cabinet-level position. Photo by Angie de Silva

MANILA, Philippines – Whether a new disaster department is created or placed under

the Office of the President, Office of the Civil Defense chief Ricardo Jalad said that the
head of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC)
should be made a "Cabinet-level" position.

The second Senate hearing on the proposed Department of Disaster Resilience fleshed
out the remaining issues on creating a department for such a huge task that is disaster
management.

Jalad, who is an undersecretary and the executive director of the NDRRMC, said that it
doesn't really matter whether a new department is created or not, as long as the
disaster council is empowered.

Senator Christopher "Bong" Go, who is among those who filed the bill, asked Jalad, "So
pabor ka ba dito sa creation, kung sakaling magiging secretary ka, pabor ka
dito?" (Would you be in favor of the creation, if you become its secretary?)

"Even if I'm not the head of that department or agency, see, I am in favor of elevating
the current structure to department-level or secretary-level," Jalad said.

Jalad said that a multi-agency approach is still better to prepare for and respond to
disasters.

"Nakikita ko kasi doon sa disaster resiliency is goal nating lahat (I see that disaster
resiliency is everyone's goal). It cannot be attained just by one department," Jalad said.
Jalad had earlier said that having just one department focused on disaster management
could be "overwhelming."

Republic Act No. 10121 or the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act
of 2010 created the NDRRMC as the overseeing body for preparedness, response, and
relief operations. (READ: Gov't eyes 'stronger' disaster management agency to replace
NDRRMC)

But since the NDRRMC is merely a council, stakeholders had pointed out that it doesn't
have the budget nor the power to make decisions on situations that require a Cabinet
rank. (READ: Urgently needed: Department for disaster resilience and climate change)

At least 14 senators have filed measures for the creation of the disaster department,
while some have expressed reservations if it would make processes more bureacratic.

At a media interview, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said that it would be better for
NDRRMC to be a medium-sized agency rather than creating a "superdepartment" that
might encroach on other departments' mandate.

"Parang mas marami 'yung advantages kung 'authority' lang siya (There are more
advantages if it's just an 'authority'), rather than cannibalizing other departments and put
it under one department," Año told reporters on Wednesday.

"So, a plus to one is a minus to other departments. Then there will be also some
overlapping of functions and probably some conflict with existing laws. Kami sa amin,
whichever okay sa amin (Whichever is fine for us). We leave it to the lawmakers," Año
said.

Funding issues

Senators also raised concerns about the funding requirement for the creation of a
disaster department which would total to P1.7 billion, according to the Department of
Budget and Management (DBM).

The overhead costs for manpower already amounts to P595 million, or one-third of the
P1.7 billion. Operating expenses totaled to P299 million, while capital outlay is at P173
million, among others.

Budget Secretary Wendel Avisado still pushed for the creation of a disaster department,
saying that it would be faster to download the funds to a department than request
everything from the DBM. Towards end of the hearing, however, Avisado softened his
position.
"Be it a department or an authority, we need to act fast from our end. We're saying also
that we want these funds released," Avisado said.

While the bills are silent on where the national disaster risk reduction and management
fund (NDRRMF) will be placed, Avisado said that the technical working group should be
the one to identify that, if the measure will be passed into law.

Currently, the NDRRMF is lodged under several agencies' budgets. But since it is under
the special purpose funds, it can only be used with the approval of the Office of the
President. For 2020, the calamity fund amounts to P20 billion.

Because of the huge amount, Senator Panfilo Lacson, the chairman of the Senate
committee on national defense and security, said that it shouldn't be placed under one
department.

"'Pag binigay sa newly-created DDR (Department of Disaster Resilience), baka maging

disastrous. Mapupunta sa overhead [expenses] 'yun," Lacson said, who used to be the
presidential assistant for rehabilitation and recovery.

(If we give it to the newly-created DDR, it might become disastrous. It might go to the
overhead expenses.)

Lacson said that another hearing will be set before a committee report is sponsored to
the plenary.

During President Rodrigo Duterte's State of the Nation Address last July 2019,
he renewed his call for Congress to create the Department of Disaster Resilience.

In November, the Senate said it will prioritize the creation of the department, adding that
"it's about time" the country had its own department that oversees disaster
preparedness and response. – Rappler.com

#AGOS
Gov't eyes 'stronger' disaster management agency to replace NDRRMC

If Congress approves, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council
(NDRRMC) will be replaced by an independent agency called the Civil Defense
Authority (CDA)

Voltaire Tupaz
Published 9:56 PM, January 12, 2017
Updated 1:09 PM, January 13, 2017
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SECOND MEETING. The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council
holds its second meeting under the Duterte administration on January 12, 2017 in Camp
Aguinaldo in Quezon City. Photo by Toni Zuniga

MANILA, Philippines – Learning from the problems encountered during Super Typhoon
Yolanda (Haiyan) and other big disasters, the government is poised to establish a new
disaster management agency.

During its second meeting on Thursday, January 12, the National Disaster Risk
Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) under the Duterte administration
tackled the proposal to create a new department to be named the Civil Defense
Authority (CDA).

The CDA will still be in charge of protecting the population from human-made and
natural calamities, but it will now be an independent agency with both policy and
implementing powers.

"I would like to elevate the OCD to department level to give them teeth to implement
policies to mitigate disasters, prepare, and mitigate (human-induced) calamities and
natural calamities like earthquake, tsunami, typhoon," Defense Secretary and NDRRMC
Chairman Delfin Lorenzana told media in a mix of English and Filipino after the council
meeting.

New structure

The CDA is envisioned to be responsible for coordinating, monitoring, overseeing, and

implementing disaster risk reduction and management efforts. It will be headed by a
director-general with cabinet-level rank and assisted by deputy directors-general,
assistant directors-general, and bureau directors.

It's a "much stronger agency than the current one which is the OCD (Office of Civil
Defense)," NDRRMC Executive Director Ricardo Jalad told Rappler.
"Disaster response will still be an inter-agency effort, but it will be orchestrated by the
CDA," Jalad noted..

The proposed agency will have the following new components:

1) The Civil Defense Council (CDC) that will take the place of the NDRRMC

The CDC shall be headed by the President as Chair and assisted by the CDA Director-
General as Vice-Chair and Executive Director. The existing membership of the
NDRRMC will be expanded to include the following officials:

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 Secretary, Department of Transportation (DOTr)

 Secretary, Department of Information and
Communications Technology (DICT)
 National Security Adviser
 Director-General, National Intelligence Coordinating
Agency (NICA)
  Insurance Commissioner, Insurance Commission (IC)
 Chair, National Historical Commission of the
Philippines (NHCP)
 President, National Organization of Local Civil Defense
Officers (NOLCDO)

2) The CDA that shall serve as the secretariat and implementing agency of the CDC

3) Local CDCs that will now be responsible for preparing and implementing
rehabilitation and recovery plans

Learning from Yolanda

The proposed new structure of the country's disaster management agency seeks to
correct the bureaucratic lapses committed under the current system, particularly during
the massive disasters that hit the country. (READ: Malacañang’s Yolanda aid dilemma:
Speed or procedure?)

"The occurrence of Typhoon Yolanda and other large-scale disasters revealed that
problems encountered in coordinating and implementing large-scale disaster risk
reduction and management efforts are rooted primarily in the nature of our governance
framework for disaster risk reduction and management," the NDRRMC said in a
resolution.

After the Yolanda disaster, experts and critics have called on the government to reform
its system in dealing with disasters.

Then Ateneo School of Government dean Tony La Viña noted the government doesn't
have "a single agency that thinks for us and plans for us pre-, during, and post-
disaster." (READ: Urgently needed, a new disaster agency)

Disaster Risk Reduction Network Philippines (DRRNetPhils) welcomed the proposal but
noted that "they still need further clarification on the civil defense framework as it relates
to the current Philippine DRRM framework."

"DRRNetPhils through our campaign Barangay 911 has been advocating for the
creation of a National DRRM Authority, and this current proposal is a step towards that,"
Kamille Ruiz, the group's communications officer, said.

"As one of the CSO representatives to the NDRRMC, we will continue to work with the
council to further improve the proposal," she added.
Voltaire Tupaz
✔@VoltaireTupaz

Usec Ricardo Jalad of @civildefensePH says the NDRRMC is set to endorse the
creation of a "stronger" disaster management agency

8
4:28 AM - Jan 12, 2017
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Civil defense or DRR?

Addressing the concerns raised by representatives of civil society in the council, Jalad
said that the proposed CDA will not undermine the disaster risk reduction framework set
out in the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management (DRRM) Act of 2010 or
RA 10121.
"What is civil defense? It's the protection of the people from threats which are not armed
in nature...Civil defense is a higher concern. It includes disaster risk reduction," Jalad
said.

If approved by members of the council in the next two weeks, an amendatory bill to RA
10121 will be endorsed to Malacañang for certification as a priority legislative measure
of the administration.

After 5 years of implementation, RA 10121 was recently evaluated by the congressional

oversight committee.

Signed on May 27, 2010, the law aimed to develop a framework and roll out resources
to enable the national government, local government units, and other stakeholders to
build communities that can survive disasters.