Perhaps the most basic valid question we can ask from these Davao Occidental and La Union projects is this: What role do these Duterte supporters play in the corruption mess? Apologists can argue that this may be incidental, unintentional, unwitting.But here’s the crux: were these politicians investigated for corruption under the Duterte administration? There the answer is clear as day – No.

Restoring its funding is the right step, but it must also serve as a warning. Disaster preparedness cannot be switched on only after lives are lost and communities destroyed. It is a moral obligation of governance.

In his letter to the then Speaker Romualdez, Paolo said that the “expenditures incurred from this trip are from my personal funds alone.” That was the only disclosure he mentioned. Nowhere in his letter did he state the purpose of the trip. That's point No. 1: the trip is cloaked in secrecy even if it meant the traveller was using official leave from his government job. That alone is an ethical dilemma.