“Gusto ko lamang po ‘yung idea ni Marcos. ‘Yung ‘Biyayang Dagat’ pati ‘Masagana 99,’ ibalik ko ‘yun. Kokopyahin ko,” Duterte told victims of typhoon ‘Lawin’(international name: Haima) that devastated the northern Luzon regions while he was away on a state visit to China.
The President praised Marcos as one of brightest leaders the Philippines had. “Bright ‘yung tao. Alam niya ‘yung gawin niya. So ibabalik ko ‘yun (fisheries and agriculture programs) dahan-dahan.”
“‘Wag kayong ma-insulto, isa sa mga bright leaders natin si Marcos; sayang lang, nanghihinayang ako,” he told the crowd.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) has reported that amount of damage to agriculture from typhoon ‘Lawin’ has reached P10.2 billion, including some 467,068 hectares of agricultural lands, with an estimated production loss of 244,224 metric tons (MT).
Duterte led the distribution of relief goods in the province, where typhoon “Lawin” made landfall last week and destroyed houses, trees, and crops.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said at least eight persons were reported dead in the Cordillera Administrative Region(CAR) due to landslides brought by ‘Lawin’, which packed winds of 150 kilometers per hour (kph) near the center and gustiness of up to 185 kph.
The typhoon, which was reported to have the strength close to that of ‘Yolanda’ that battered and left about 6,000 people dead in Eastern Visayas in November 2013, flooded 118 villages in the four Northern Luzon regions and destroyed at least 1,327 houses.
