President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. on Monday, Oct. 31, rejected the proposal to place the country under a national state of calamity for one year due to the impact of severe tropical storm Paeng.

In a press briefing in Noveleta, Cavite, Marcos said he thinks the nationwide declaration is not “necessary”, saying that the damages are highly localized.

“I came to a conclusion in consultation with the DENR [Department of Environment and Natural Resources]. Sabi naman kasi hindi naman extensive [ang mga damage], it is very highly localized. We are talking about the east coast of Quezon, dito sa Cavite and then Maguindanao. Those are the areas [affected],” he explained.

Marcos added that other areas such as Ilocos, Cagayan Valley, and Visayas Region do not need to be placed under a state of calamity.

“I don’t think it is necessary, hindi naman ganon ang [pag-declare ng] national calamity. I think we can focus better if we stay with the calamities status we have now,” Marcos said.

Last Saturday, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) recommended the one-year national state of calamity to Marcos.

The proposal was rooted in its pre-disaster risk assessment that found 16 out of 17 regions are at “high risk“.

While 25 out of 64 provinces within the diameter of Paeng are assessed as “high risk“.