My mother went to Tacloban last weekend to check on how things are, since the media has shown us that Tacloban is getting back to “normal”. Our Interior Secretary, Mar Roxas, even said that “The worst is over.” I was hoping for some good news from my mom, like how we could go home earlier as planned.
How wrong I was.
According to her, Tacloban was far from okay. The pictures and videos that were shown on the TV were all chosen spots in the city. The stench of the dead still remained, as some of the dead were buried under debris or were still not taken by authorities. There were still news of robbery and murder, by desprate people who are in need of shelter and food. The offices are not yet functional, since there were no computers to use. The people walked like zombies, their eyes sunken and their direction had no goal. Trash were mixed with the bodies, and a lot of towns were still not passable. There are still boats on the shoreline that trampled houses and the schools have become homes for those who lost theirs.
So where was the millions of money donated by the international aid?
Probably deep in the pockets of those who were meant to give them to the public. Most of the Taclobanons, including my dad who have stayed their for over a week to guard our house, have not received any goods. None. Nada. We don’t have available house materials, which meant that the people’s houses could not be rebuilt. It was still chaos in Tacloban, and we are no where near to normal.
When it was night, it was dead silent. You could hear a pebble being thrown from two houses away. Since there was a curfew, no one roamed the streets. Yet you’d hear someone screaming in the distance. You’d hear gunshots. It was terribly terrifying, yet people of Tacloban endured it.
And now that the international media has left our grounds, we are all being fooled by our local media, some controlled by the government. There is no truth, all bias.
The whole world needs to know that Tacloban is far from being normal. That what are fed to the others are lies. Other survivors are either dying from hunger, or have been killed. My mother and father are witnesses to the lies of the media and the government. I hope you share this, to show that we are still struggling. We cannot stand when we’re being crippled by the media.
Tacloban will rise, but only if we are properly helped.
*all pictures taken by my mom when she was there
Sigh. This is such tragic. All we can do right now is think positive and hope for the best. Prayers will help. if not the government – at least, the prayers will save everyone. I believe in that.
It's so sad that the media has to make stuff up when people truly do need help.
I totally believe what you are saying–it happens here in the US as well–there are still towns in New Jersey that have not been able to come back yet–people are still homeless because of hurricane Sandy. My heart goes out to those people.
That is so sad! People are in this mindframe; where they don't like to see how long things take to recover from. We want quick fixes. And so the media gives it to them. But it only hinders the problem. They think "oh it's been a few weeks; they all should be fine" but in reality; it can take up to a full year or two to really recover from something like this! And Taclaban is far
So very sad, and heart-wrenching to read. 🙁
That is terrible! I am so sorry to hear this is happening to the survivors. I am sharing on google plus.
Wow, I am so sorry. I am continuing to pray for you and your family and especially your country. May God bless your nation. I know the Phillippines didn't have much to begin with (my former boss is from there) and it will take a long time to repair. The US is still repairing from Hurricane Katrina. Hopefully your government will spend the money the way international aid intended it to be
That is absolutely terrible! I am curious how international aid gets handled & how it gets to survivors so that it doesn't end up in the wrong hands!
What a horrible thing to have to read. I am truly sorry that this is happening to you;I hope that that things get better.
I do not know anyone who would believe it was getting back to normal this quickly. Unfortunatley that would take a miracle. I hope things do start improving soon, but unfortunately it is going to take years to recover.
This is so very sad. I am sorry for all of the people who have to live like this. I can not even begin to imagine it.
I am so sorry the government is not doing all it can to aide in the aftermath. My prayers are with the survivors. Getting the word out. Sharing on FB.
Such devastation. I had hoped that money that we are donating would make it to the people that need it. Hang in there and keep moving forward.
It always seems when these tragedies happen that so much money is donated right away but it takes the government so long to use that money in the right ways to promote progress and reconstruction. Makes you wonder what they do with all that money.
WOW that does not look normal 🙁 sorry to see this!
This is just so awful. I'm sharing this too so people can see.
It looks so devastating that I can't help but think it will be years before things return to a stage of normalcy. The health risks are obvious with that kind of debris, water damage and remaining bodies. I'm so sorry!
Oh that is so sad 🙁 I prayed a lot for more help coming but the help didn't get put to good use. This is so sad. I hope there is progress after one month… Praying hard…
so, so sorry. so much devastation and so REAL. thank you for sharing.
That is such a shame! I did think things were getting back to normal but I'm so sorry to hear that it isn't. I pray that they will do the right thing and help those that need to be helped.
That is horrible. So sorry to hear that this happened. Tragic.
That's CRAZY.. really.. this is NORMAL… wow.. I totally understand your frustration and keep you and your family in my prayers each and every night… please keep us posted..
Wow such a sad scene. No words to say. But I will keep you in prayer!