4 Years Ago Today! Bird Flu in Pampanga Contained in 2 Months

One year into my stint as Secretary of Agriculture, I faced the greatest test in crisis management when the feared poultry disease Avian Influenza or Bird Flu hit the town of San Luis, Pampanga and the neighboring areas.

With the support of the local government units led by Gov. Lilia Pineda and the mayors led by Venancio “Asyong” Macapagal and other agencies including the Armed Forces, Police, Bureau of Fire and the private sector, the DA formed a crisis management and animal experts team to implement quarantine protocols and depopulation.

In two months, the crisis was neutralized and farmers whose farms were affected were compensated.

The best lesson that I learned in that crisis is for leaders to really go to Ground Zero for an accurate assessment and feel of the problem to come up with the most effective solutions.

#GovernanceIsCommonSense!