A tangled mess

THE EXPLANATION offered on Wednesday by Neville Wint, the executive officer of the Office of Disaster Preparedness and Management (ODPM), as to why some people in flood-ravaged areas did not receive prompt assistance embodies the tangled mess of disaster response in this country.

According to Wint, the ODPM did not fall down. Rather, it was regional corporations that need to be investigated. Into this mix, he said the Ministry of National Security is responsible for the acquisition of key assets, such as boats, dinghies, flat-bottom vessels, and kayaks - all of which were needed to effect rescue. However, the ODPM, too, procures and did procure marine assets after the last heavy flooding in south Trinidad. Some assets were “distributed to agencies,” and dinghies were given to members of the Defence Force last Friday. It would appear the assets were not enough.

Wint’s defence of the ODPM betrays the problem. There is simply too much confusion when it comes to our disaster response mechanism. While we quibble over who are the true “first responders” people are facing the risk of drowning.

We have previously called for a rationalisation of the disaster response agencies. We do so again.

In theory, it is a good idea to have one centralised, operational brain coordinating more local responses. But we need to ask the question: is TT so large as to need devolution in its emergency response system? What is the benefit of engaging local government when local government is itself based on arbitrary boundaries, premised on considerations that have no bearing to the realities of natural disasters be it earthquakes, flooding or landslides?

Just as we should remove politics from how we respond to a given natural disaster, so must we remove the bureaucracy from something as important and urgent as disaster response. It’s time to end the culture of passing the buck by designing a less convoluted system.

Meanwhile, we welcome the disclosure that Government has accepted about $4 million in foreign aid from development banks. And all should condemn those criminals who have been targeting flood victims for their relief supplies. On the other side of the coin are the enthusiastic donors whose fervour has not been matched by organisational nous on the part of local agencies. Many are collecting supplies with no clear plan for distribution, leading to a scatter-shot approach at best.

The unsavoury side of human nature has also thrown up reports of persons being made to pose for photographs in return for aid, as well as scammers and fraudsters seeking to cash in on State grants.

If the same degree of creativity and skill were used to prevent flooding and to organise the response of the State today we’d be in a better position

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