| Photo by Raul Vearzar on Unxplash
There is that old saying, “curiosity can kill a cat,” – and in our country, too much politics could ultimately kill all of us. As the May 2025 midterm election draws near with the filing of certificates of candidacy just around the corner, we can expect shifts in the political landscape with new party coalitions or alliances, realignments, and even defections to happen.
While Senate and congressional hearings continue to take centerstage with Filipinos riveted to the TV or the screens of their smart gadgets waiting for the latest episode of the Alice PO-Guo story, let’s not lose sight of the fact that we are faced with so many serious challenges that can potentially impact the future of our country and people.
In the 2024 World Risk Report published two weeks ago by the Germany-based Bündnis Entwicklung Hilft and the Ruhr University Bochum-Institute for International Law of Peace and Armed Conflict, the Philippines topped the list of countries most at risk of extreme natural events and negative climate change. Indonesia, India, Colombia, Mexico, Myanmar, Mozambique, Russia, and Bangladesh followed, with Pakistan at number 10.
This is the third consecutive year that the Philippines has topped the report’s “World Risk Index,” which breaks down the disaster risks of 193 United Nations member-states based on their “exposure to natural hazards, the vulnerability of the population and the coping and adaptive capacities of societies.”
According to the report, climate change is “increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme natural events, leaving less and less time for regeneration. As soon as one disaster is overcome, the next threat is already looming.”
The Philippines is hit by an average of 20 typhoons every year, which also result in massive flooding in many parts of the country. The impact has been devastating, with the displacement of hundreds of thousands of families and damage to infrastructure and agriculture worth billions of pesos that could ultimately affect the economy.
A recent example was Super Typhoon Enteng (international name Yagi), which left a trail of destruction, causing massive flooding and landslides, class cancellations, and disruptions of power supply and telecommunication services. According to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, damage to infrastructure across six regions in the country is estimated at P700 million, with agricultural losses estimated at over P650 million.
Seeing the devastation caused by Typhoon Enteng and the bare forests in many areas, the President said the government must implement stricter laws against illegal logging because this has become a matter of “life and death.”
Another cause for concern is a recent study made by the University of the Philippines Resilience Institute titled “Ground subsidence in major Philippine metropolitan cities from 2014 to 2020,” which highlights the threat of “gradual sinking or sudden collapse” faced by Metro Manila and other urban areas due to “excessive groundwater extraction, rapid urbanization, and natural sediment compaction, exacerbated by climate change through rising sea levels.”
“Climate change, defense and security, and low quality of education are just a few of the issues that our political leaders must seriously tackle, as they could impact the future of our country. Undoubtedly, too much politics could ultimately “kill the cat.”
A major study result reveals significant ground subsidence in Iloilo, with rates reaching as high as nine millimeters per year—no doubt exacerbated by groundwater extraction.
In a business column over a decade ago, I remember writing about the excessive extraction of groundwater that is causing cities to sink slowly, with overpopulated areas like Metro Manila at high risk due to the overwhelming demand for water for drinking, bathing, and other needs. The situation was also aggravated by the construction of deep wells by private subdivision owners and businesses whose operations require large amounts of water. As early as then, several areas aside from Metro Manila were identified as water critical: Baguio, Davao, Metro Cebu, Cagayan de Oro, Bacolod, Angeles in Pampanga, and Iloilo.
Aside from climate change and natural disasters, quality education is another problem that impacts future generations. This was highlighted in a U-Report survey conducted by UNICEF, which showed that climate change, natural disasters, and education were the top concerns among the 3,000 survey respondents.
The Philippines’ very low ranking (bottom four among 64 countries) in the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA), which tests students’ creative thinking abilities, underscores the need to improve the country’s educational system. Filipino students are ranked among the world’s weakest in math, science, and reading, which are considered basic or fundamental competencies.
A lot of hope is riding on the shoulders of Education Secretary Sonny Angara, who, I’m glad, is on the right track, starting with an increase in the salary of teachers, with plans to incorporate coding in the curriculum and utilize technology that would allow teachers to concentrate on the job of teaching instead of being burdened by administrative work.
“We are working to incorporate coding into our curriculum and are utilizing educational technology, such as analytics, to assess learners in real-time. This will allow teachers to focus more on teaching and less on administrative tasks, ultimately improving the quality of education,” Secretary Angara said during the most recent Philippines-Singapore Business and Investment Summit.
Externally, the Philippines is facing the most serious challenge to our sovereignty and existence as a free country – not because of climate change or rising sea levels – but by forces coming from a foreign country claiming large portions of our territory.
Climate change, defense and security, and low quality of education are just a few of the issues that our political leaders must seriously tackle, as they could impact the future of our country. Undoubtedly, too much politics could ultimately “kill the cat.”
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