Provincial administrator Atty. Kathyrin Pioquinto is saying that the Provincial Emergency Management Administration (PEMA) has been “set aside” and will be “dormant” in terms of the province’s response to the Covid pandemic.
As the Covid problem is no longer considered an emergency situation, the PEMA is being set aside as the province’s Covid response now is being led by the Bohol Inter Agency Task Force (B-IATF), the provincial administrator revealed in a radio interview on Monday (June 1, 2020) over “Open Forum” hosted by Ardy Araneta-Batoy and Dave Albarado.
It was revealed in that interview that with the PEMA being “set aside”, it is no longer part of the organic structure of the BIATF.
Pioquinto added that with PEMA now being ‘set aside’, it will be re-activated once there is an emergency which the provincial government needs to address.
Moreover, Pioquinto said that ever since the inception of the organization, PEMA has been headed by Gov. Arthur Yap.
As the current state of PEMA is dormant, there is no identified ground commander because the organization is not functioning of late, Pioquinto bared.
To remember, the PEMA was created through Executive Order No. 26 issued by Yap.
The previous ground commander of PEMA is former provincial administrator Alfonso Damalerio II.
Damalerio was appointed as ground commander of PEMA by virtue of a memorandum order, the provincial administrator relayed in the interview.
At any point when there is an emergency and the services of PEMA are needed, the governor may appoint a ground commander, Pioquinto said.
Now, the B-IATF is the organization that will handle the Covid crisis in Bohol. This started on June 1, 2020, the provincial administration mentioned.
Furthermore, Pioquinto said that the PEMA, during its involvement with the response to the Covid crisis, did its job well.
Pioquinto even thanked Damalerio for his services as PEMA ground commander.
She added that Damalerio was instrumental in organizing the different clusters for the proper response to the Covid pandemic.
The formation of the B-IATF is an offshoot of the suggestion of national IATF chief implementor Sec. Carlito Galvez, Pioquinto said. This is for Bohol to mirror the structure of the national IATF, as Bohol is being eyed as a model for the implementation of the new normal, Pioquinto pointed out in the same interview.