The ground shook. Then the bodies fell. At least 35 dead. That is the grim tally emerging from the southern Philippines after a powerful earthquake ripped through the region. The tremor, measured at 7.1 magnitude, sent residents scrambling into the streets. The question now is not just about rescue. It is about who will pay. Who will be blamed.
I have been making calls. Sources in Manila say the government is already bracing for a backlash. The military, often deployed for disaster response, is stretched thin. The local governors? They will point fingers at Manila. It is always the same game. The political aftershocks could rival the geological ones.
This is a region used to hardship. Mindanao has seen conflict, poverty, and natural disasters. But each time, the machinery of power grinds into action. Aid pledges are made. Photo opportunities are staged. Then the cameras leave. What remains is a hollowed out community, waiting for the next tremor.
My contact in the President's office tells me the priority is stabilising the narrative. 'We are coordinating with local governments,' they said. That is code for 'we are centralising control.' Expect a state of calamity. Expect funds to be released. But expect also the usual infighting over who gets the credit.
The opposition is already sharpening its knives. They will demand full disclosure of disaster preparedness funds. They will ask why early warning systems failed. They will use the dead as political ammunition. It is distasteful. It is inevitable.
I remember a similar quake in 2013. The response was chaotic. The rebuilding was slow. This time will be no different unless the politics are put aside. But that is a big ask in a system built on patronage and survival.
For now, the focus is on the living. Rescue teams are digging through rubble. Hospitals are overflowing. The dead are being counted. But in the corridors of power, the real counting has already begun. Votes. Budgets. Alliances. The earthquake did not just level buildings. It shook the political foundations.
Watch this space. The number will rise. So will the political temperature.
