Above: the entrance to a train station in Manila submerged by flood waters after typhoon "Ondoy" flooded 80% of Manila (pop 11.5 million) last weekend, causing massive damage (photo by rembcc).
In the deeply religious Philippines many are blaming the disaster on an "Act of God", or 'climate change', but 'green architect' and urban planner Felino “Jun” Palafox, one of the world's top architects, with a reputation for honesty and speaking out against corruption, is putting the blame firmly at the door of the Manila government;
“This is not an act of God, as what people have already said. This is a sin of omission on the part of government and leadership."
What he means is corruption; a survey of businessmen in the Philippines last year discovered that 7 out of 10 were asked for pay-offs by government agencies.
Palafox points to a land use plan that took floods into consideration which was drawn up as far back as 1977, titled “Metro Manila Transport, Land Use and Development Planning Project,” sponsored by the World Bank.
Palafox says that the study noted the possibility of heavy flooding in at least three sites of urban growth in the Philippine capital—the Marikina Valley and its northern and southern parts.
These are precisely the areas in Manila worst hit by flooding today.
The Malina authorities ignored the study and did nothing. Now 80% of the city is flooded.
As with Hurricane Katrina which devastated New Orleans (large parts of the city remain a wasteland), the Manila authorities allowed a highly dangerous situation to arise because of inadequate planning controls, corruption, ignoring expert opinion, and worst of all doing nothing to defend large areas of the city, especially the poorest.
• Felino Palafox is considered to be a 'maverick' because he has high ethical standards which makes him stand out from the majority. Last year he turned down a $1 million fee because the deal involved the destruction of 300 trees in an urban area, some of them over 100 years old. In 2007 he pulled out of a project to build Manila’s tallest building because it would result in traffic jams.
• Stop Blaming God (Manila Times)
• Flooding in Metro: Who is to Blame (abs-cbn)