It would seem that even nature is constantly reminding us of how corruption can ruin our country.
Aside from the persistent flooding that constantly brings to the attention of the public the corruption alleged on flood-control project dealings, Typhoon Opong and the southwest monsoon have also caused more than their fair share of damage throughout 13 regions in the country.
According to a report from the Department of Education, a total of 1,370 classrooms were damaged by the typhoon and the monsoon. Of that number 891 classrooms sustained minor damage, 225 major damage, and 254 totally destroyed. An estimated 13.3 million learners are now affected as well as 569,000 personnel in 23,796 public schools across those regions.
There was no mention as to how many of these damaged or destroyed classrooms had just been built for this new school year, but for those that have just been built only to be ruined, we can consider that money down the drain.
Of course, those classrooms will have to be repaired or rebuilt, there’s no arguing that. Our learners need somewhere to learn. Of course, these repairs will have to be shouldered by the government, and that means the taxpayers have to pay for it.
Now we can’t help but think this is where our taxes ought to be going, instead of ending up in the pockets of a few greedy politicians and their favored contractors.
Now we can’t help but think that if public money hadn’t ended up somewhere else we would have some ready cash for this development.
This makes the search for the truth behind corruption in the flood-control projects as well as the punishment of those found responsible all the more important.
It cannot be helped that we happen to be one of the countries most frequently hit by natural disasters, including ones that destroy classrooms. And with six more storms expected to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility before the year ends, there’s no telling if more classrooms will need to be repaired or rebuilt again.