The media arrives to the areas in dribs and drabs, amid veiled accusations regarding whether few are requested from Valencia or fewer are sent than those requested from Madrid. But those affected, after several days in the mud, surrounded by piled-up vehicles and belongings, without electricity or water, with difficulties in accessing food and medicine, are already fed up.
It is not difficult for me to empathize with political leaders who have to make decisions in complex situations. Normally, they have partial and sometimes contradictory information. Although they usually have the support of specialists in the field (normally, officials with extensive experience in managing similar events), there is almost never anyone capable of proposing an optimal solution. Frequently, we have to choose between imperfect, risky responses, assuming that some harm will always occur and trying to minimize the damage. Adopting all possible preventive measures, there is always something that goes wrong and makes them insufficient. Assuming this type of responsibilities is part of the obligations of those who govern us. As is often stated, “it is included in the position.”
However, I can only feel perplexity and irritation when faced with an obvious concatenation of failures, with serious and irreparable consequences, there continues to be resistance to assuming responsibilities and it continues to seem that there is no one in charge. All the messages launched by official organizations (such as AEMET or the Júcar Hydrographic Confederation) and the different administrations (state, regional and local) were made public, spread quickly, and have remained in history (even though some have been erased, which has only highlighted the error of the person who issued it). The usual war of fanatics, trying to discredit the opponents, remembering some of those messages and ignoring the others, should only cover with shame those who participate in it.
After the natural disaster and its devastating consequences, amplified by the chain of failures in the prevention system, it was necessary for the response to match the immensity of the drama and disaster. But it has not been, and this has only accentuated the anger and impotence of the citizens. Many people have tried to mobilize to lend a hand, armed with good will, and little else… But all these efforts can be useless if no one takes care of organizing the aid and creating the conditions for it to be effective.
I imagine that the multiple fronts on which action must be taken require an organizational capacity that is probably not available. And that, in such circumstances, it is very difficult to set priorities to allocate resources that will always be scarce. But I think I am not the only one who has had the feeling that the autonomous Administration, unable to use all the means at its disposal to mitigate the consequences of the catastrophe (the Provincial Council or the University of Valencia, for example, did act in time ), she went into shock and was paralyzed for many hours, limiting herself to little more than recounting the victims and material damage. He could not even define the most urgent actions and request the necessary means to undertake them. If someone on the ground is not able to establish where to act and what resources are needed in each place, should we expect a person sitting in an office in Madrid to do it?
The feeling that there is no one in front has been spreading. The Valencian government has the necessary legal instruments to give up the reins (request the declaration of a State of Alarm or raise the emergency to level 3), but it seems willing to continue remaining in control, despite the fact that it does not seem capable of reacting with the speed, forcefulness and effectiveness that the situation demands. As I write this text, I am verifying that he has not managed to articulate a minimally effective organization in the volunteer center installed in the City of Arts and Sciences, at the helm of which is, apparently, an entire vice president of the Consell (many are spending more time on the bus than helping the victims). The media arrives to the areas in dribs and drabs, amid veiled accusations regarding whether few are requested from Valencia or fewer are sent than those requested from Madrid. But those affected, after several days in the mud, surrounded by piled-up vehicles and belongings, without electricity or water, with difficulties in accessing food and medicine, are already fed up.
There are no excuses. The DANA was inevitable, but the forecasts, this time, were, in general, correct. Some warnings were given on time, others came very late. We will never know how many deaths could have been prevented. But, with each passing day, we are seeing how important it is to act quickly and effectively. The magnitude of the response is falling far short of what the magnitude of the tragedy requires. The Spanish government must assume its responsibility and take control of the situation, mobilizing more resources and coordinating the actions of European troops (I know that a saturation of resources can be almost as harmful as their absence, but nothing prevents it, for example, they are approaching the area). He will run an enormous political risk, of course. But I think many of us will agree that that is the least of it. It must be used thoroughly, resorting to its greatest organizational and logistical capacity, and deploying all the resources it has.
The laudable efforts of many individuals cannot fill more than a minimal part of the gap left by the insufficiency of public media. But if the State is not capable of being present and acting quickly and effectively, the crisis of legitimacy of the institutions will increase. There will probably be those who will be delighted with this, as it will fuel the rise of individualism and the rejection of the collective. I don’t.
#reins #cost
