ALL military camp commanders in the country were told to take the lead in helping conserve water as the government ramps up efforts and strategies to help mitigate and manage the impacts of El Niño.
Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. has ordered all military camp commanders to conserve water in line with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive for government intervention, saying “commanders of all military camps across the country must take the lead in conserving water as we begin to experience the effects of El Niño.”
State weather monitoring sees the El Niño phenomenon to persist until May of this year.
During the second meeting of Task Force El Niño (TFEN) at the Office of Civil Defense in Camp Aguinaldo, Teodoro stressed “we should all support and practice daily the government’s water conservation policy as we experience the effects of El Niño.”
He also emphasized the need to repair facilities such as leaking pipes to prevent additional water wastage, adding that all military personnel and their dependents living inside military camps “must do their part in the whole-of-government approach to mitigate the El Niño effects.”
The DND chief said the directive to military camp commanders was issued in compliance with the president’s Executive Order No. 53, which directs the government to streamline, reactivate, and reconstitute the old El Niño task forces under EO No. 16 (s. 2001) and Memorandum Order No. 38 (s. 2019).
Signed on January 19, 2024, President Marcos’ order directs the task force to develop a comprehensive disaster preparedness and rehabilitation plan for El Niño and La Niña to provide “systematic, holistic, and results-driven interventions” to help the public cope and minimize their devastating effects.
Teodoro was designated by the Chief Executive as the task force chairperson, while Department of Science and Technology Secretary Renato Solidum is co-chairperson.
The President also appointed Secretary of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga, Secretary of the Department of Agriculture Francis Tiu Laurel Jr., Secretary of the Department of Health Teodoro Herbosa, and Secretary of National Economic and Development Authority Arsenio Balisacan as task force members.