'Like an orchestra without a conductor' - logistics expert on gov't relief efforts

By: Ben Arnold O. De Vera, InterAksyon.com

MANILA - “It’s like an orchestra without a conductor”—this is how a logistics executive described the government’s relief efforts for the victims of super-typhoon ‘Yolanda’ in the Visayas.

 Despite the influx of aid and donations from the international community as well as fellow Filipinos, reports say typhoon survivors have yet to receive help. What went wrong?
 For Supply Chain Management Association of the Philippines (SCMAP) president Arnel S. Gamboa, the lack of a master plan and the absence of an experienced leader on the ground are hampering relief efforts.

 “There’s no concerted effort, no road map,” said Gamboa in a telephone interview, adding that “analysis paralysis” has afflicted government relief efforts. “There’s a lot of planning, but [efforts] falter execution-wise.”

 According to Gamboa, the massive destruction brought by Yolanda—said to be this year’s strongest typhoon—is a logistics nightmare: “There was no electricity, no cell phone signal, a lot of debris blocking roads.”

It also does not help that the most badly-hit areas like the provinces of Leyte and Samar are islands enveloped by the seas and the Pacific Ocean, yet have inferior ports compared with neighboring business hubs in the Visayas, such as Cebu.

Hard ports
“Tacloban and Ormoc are considered ‘hard ports’—not strategic in terms of commerce—in the logistics industry. These ports have not much business, not many ships calling, not equipped with modern facilities compared with seaports in Cebu, Cagayan de Oro and Davao,” Gamboa said, adding that the transfer of goods to the affected ports—which were also ravaged by Yolanda—may take more time and effort.

“The catastrophe was really big. Even the other past administrations could not have responded faster [to Yolanda’s aftermath]. We are limited technically and in equipment,” he said.
These difficulties, however, may have been overcome had the government planned its disaster response efforts well. “There could have been better ways of addressing problems,” Gamboa said.

For instance, the air strips in Ormoc and Tacloban in Leyte as well as Guiuan in Samar could have been immediately maximized.

First 3 days crucial
“The first three days were very crucial and will spell success. But according to reports, the first few government officials who went there did not even bring satellite phones,” Gamboa said.
“I think what we lack right now in relief operations is accurate data gathering. Although a lot of government officials are now there, communication and information are not coming on time. Data gathering needs a lot of ground work and reconnaissance. Experts should have been sent to the field; you have to hear from certain towns,” he said.

By “experts,” Gamboa means the military.

“The military, ground commanders have expertise on handling the aftermath of calamities and handling logistics,” he said.

But for Gamboa, the supposed bigger role of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) seems understated in the case of relief efforts in the wake of Yolanda.

Qualified ground commander
“We need a qualified ground commander that make things happen, who’s on top of the situation,” he said.

As it is, a number of government officials and personalities are working on the ground, but in this case, not even the “work hard, work smart” mantra would work if they lack a blueprint for relief operation, according to Gamboa.

“Secretaries Soliman, Gazmin and Roxas are there and they may be smart and hardworking but if their efforts are not concerted, it’s nothing. They need a single plan,” Gamboa said, referring to the heads of the Departments of Social Welfare and Development, of Defense, and of the Interior and Local Government.

For instance, the roadblocks and debris piled up on the streets could be cleaned up through collective effort in communities. “Debris can be put aside if people are helping each other, there’s the spirit of bayanihan,” Gamboa said.

He said media and other private organizations have been able to reach far-flung areas, which raises the following questions: “How come the government could not send relief goods to the heart of Tacloban? How come the private sector can charter goods?”

Learn from private sector
In this case, the government should intensify consolidation of relief efforts with the private sector to learn its tricks, Gamboa said, adding that “There should be synergy between the government and the private sector.”

Within government, the blame game between national officials and local government units (LGUs) should be put to an end, he said.

“Both LGUs and the national government have equipment. The national government can bring heavy equipment, barges from Cebu as soon as possible, but I don’t think it happened,” Gamboa said.

It worries Gamboa that amid more help pouring in from here and abroad, the already slow delivery of relief goods may even become slower.

“With the influx of donations coming from the international community, we have to show better than the last six days. More donations mean a bigger challenge to bring them to victims. Baka lalo nang magkumahog,” Gamboa said.

Moving forward, the government should put in place supply chain resiliency measures to better prepare the country for natural calamities and disasters, he said.

 If Yolanda’s wrath is any indication, the Philippines lacked preparedness.


“We were curious: was the government really prepared? Was there really a disaster response program? But based on what we have seen, we have doubts,” Gamboa said.

http://www.interaksyon.com/business/75131/its-like-an-orchestra-without-a-conductor-logistics-expert-says-of-govt-relief-efforts