Destruction

THE magnitude-7.2 earthquake that struck central Philippines last Tuesday, October 15, has claimed 161 lives according to authorities. About 400 people were reported injured and some are still missing as of press time.
Landslides were reported in some areas. Nearly 3,000 houses were destroyed and another 16,000 were damaged in Bohol and Cebu, officials reported as well.  At least ten centuries-old churches crumbled to the ground or were severely damaged.
According to CNN, as of 6pm Thursday, 12 of Bohol’s 47 municipalities were without power, and authorities were predicting that it would be restored within a day or two. As of 5:00 p.m. Thursday, more than 1,300 aftershocks had been recorded, 28 of which were felt. In all, 158,466 people were displaced, the government said. Nearly 100,000 of them were housed in 85 evacuation centers.
The tragedy came a couple of days after Typhoon Santi ravaged Central Luzon, unleashing its hurricane-like winds. In the province of Nueva Ecija alone, the estimated amount of damage wrought by Santi has risen to almost three billion pesos. More than 2/3 of the province’s rice crops were totally damaged as well as hectares upon hectares of soon-to-be-harvested palay got soaked in water as a result of the strong winds.
Floods and typhoons in Luzon, earthquake in the Visayas and terrorism in parts of Mindanao – all conspiring to put a dent to the economic glory being experienced by the Philippines now.
Last week, the Philippines received an investment-grade rating from Moody’s Investors Service, highlighting the rapid growth and political stability that the country has enjoyed in recent years.
According to the New York Times, the one-notch upgrade to Baa3 means the Philippines is now rated as investment grade by three of the world’s leading ratings agencies. Fitch Ratings ranked the country as investment grade in March, and Standard & Poor’s followed suit several weeks later.
“Moody’s said the country’s robust economic performance, fiscal and debt consolidation, political stability and improved governance were reasons for the upgrade,” the article said.
“The Philippines’ economic performance has entered a structural shift to higher growth, accompanied by low inflation,” Moody’s added in a news release.
We are one with the rest of our Filipino brothers and sisters in fervently hoping that the natural and man-made calamities that have rocked the Philippines to its core recently, do not cause irreparable damage to the economy. The people and the government have been working hand in hand to move forward despite these temporary setbacks.
We likewise wish that these destruction do not cause enough distraction to the remaining good guys in the government to pursue the truth and do what is right. The issue of corruption and Janet Napoles have been put on the sidelines because of recent happenings but we hope the Filipinos don’t forget that the case is still ongoing and that a lot of politicians still need to explain themselves and come clean about their involvement (or non-involvement) with these shenanigans.
(AJPress)