Marcos to visit flood victims in Valenzuela, Navotas

President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. is set to visit Valenzuela and Navotas cities on Thursday to check on the condition of victims of the massive flooding caused by the recent inclement weather.

Marcos first went to the command center in Valenzuela City where he met with Mayor Wes Gatchalian and his brother, Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, and discussed how the government could respond to the needs of the flood victims.

The President said authorities should give local government units a heads up if dam gates will be opened to ensure that residents would be evacuated in time.

"We have a weakness in communication... you have to give them as much as three hours [prior notice]," the President said.

After the command center visit, the President will proceed to Barangay Malanday evacuation center, also in Valenzuela city, before proceeding to Navotas, another area greatly affected by the floods caused by the heavy rains brought by the Southwest Monsoon or Habagat that was enhanced by Super Typhoon Carina.

In Navotas, Marcos will visit the Tanza evacuation center and the navigational gate that was damaged last month, which supposedly aggravated flooding in the area.

The President reiterated that aside from food, evacuees should also be provided with medical assistance.

"The next part of this is going to be healthcare. We need a clinic for each evacuation center, or at least a roving medical team deployed. We need to deploy barangay health workers, until the doctors reach the area," Marcos said.

"We need to assess the health of evacuees, see if anyone is in need [of medical attention]. The long term problem usually is medicine, and we have to prepare for that. Medicines for fever, but also maintenance medicines, since they don't have access to them at the moment. That requires a prescription from the doctor, and we cannot just buy and send them all. We have to get a doctor to prescribe to ensure that we are doing the right thing," he added.

The Metro Manila Council earlier placed the National Capital Region (NCR) under state of calamity due to massive flooding.

The Palace has also suspended work in government offices in NCR, as well as Regions 3 and 4A, on Thursday, July 25, to pave the way for rescue and rehabilitation efforts. —KBK/VDV, GMA Integrated News