I did everything I could – Former DILG Secretary Mar Roxas
ORMOC CITY, Leyte — Presidential aspirant Mar Roxas reiterated that he did everything to mobilize help for Yolandaaffected areas.
He emphasized this in a talk with local media members here during a recent visit to the city. The administration standard bearer who was formerly Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary, was in Tacloban, Leyte when the super-typhoon struck and devastated Eastern Visayas on Nov. 8, 2013.
Roxas said critics should consider that Yolanda was the strongest typhoon to have hit land. “Ang alam ko is bago pa dumating si Yolanda pumunta na ako rito. Tinaya ko ang buhay ko, ang sarili ko para makasama kayo [at] makapaghanda. Ginawa natin ang lahat before, during, after – hindi ako bumitiw (What I know is that even before Yolanda struck, I was already here. I staked my own life to be here with you and to prepare for the super-typhoon. We did everything before, during and after Yolanda, and I didn’t let go),” he said.
He added that it is part of his job to take criticisms constructively. “Ito naman ay kasama sa trabaho. Sa trabahong ito sala sa init, sala sa lamig. ‘Bakit ka pumunta?’ Pag hindi ka naman pumunta, ‘Bakit hindi ka pumunta?’ Basta ako, alam ko na ginawa ko ang lahat, ginawa ko ang tama (Criticism is part of the job (of a public servant). In this job, damn if you do and damn if you don’t. People asked, why did you have to be there, and if weren’t there, people would also ask, why didn’t you go there? For myself, I know I did everything I could do to help, I did what was right,” he continued.
Roxas stressed that he does not allow criticisms to distract him from doing what he should, as far as his job is concerned. “Nandito ako, tumutok ako, ginawa ko ang magagawa ko para makabangon tayo. Perfect ba? Hindi. May pagkukulang ba ako? Marahil. Hindi naman tayo perpekto. Pero ano man ang batikos, puna, hindi ko kayo pinabayaan. Hindi ako dumating, nag-photo op lang tapos umalis. Nakita ninyo pati sa rehabilitation tumutok tayo (I was there, I devoted time and I did what I could so we could stand up from the devastation. Was everything perfect? No. Did I fall short on what was expected of me? It’s possible. We’re not perfect. But no matter the criticisms, I did not leave you alone. I did not come here (Leyte), had my picture taken, then left. You all saw that even during the rehabilitation period, I did not let go),” he stressed.
The LP standard bearer opined that the pace by which a city or town recovers from a disaster depends in part on the local leadership. “Maraming nagrereklamo sa Yolanda pero palagay ko nasa leadership. Dito sa Ormoc, pumunta kami nila (Defense) Secretary Volt(aire) Gazmin, (Social Welfare) Secretary Dinky (Soliman) (many complained about how people were taken care of after Yolanda, but I guess it also depends on the kind of leadership there is in the local level. Here in Ormoc, I was with (Defense) Secretary Voltz (Voltaire) Gazmin and (Department of Social Welfare and Development) Secretary Dinky (Corazon) Soliman), he said.