Well if you have been watching our coverage over the past week, you know that weve been on the ground in Tacloban and elsewhere trying to be as accurate as possible. Accuracy is what we care most about here at CNN. In giving information that might actually help people on the ground and help the relief effort in some way become more efficient. In our reporting, it seems though that here in the Philippines become something about political issue at times. A broadcaster, radio broadcaster, named Korina Sanchez has barely taking issue with some of my reporting. She also is not just a radio broadcaster, she happens to be the wife of the interior minister who is overseeing the relief effort on the ground. The Sanchez seems to be under the mistaken impression that I said, I saw no presence of the Philippine government on the ground in Tacloban. I never said that. Obviously, Ive been on the ground in Tacloban for days. And Ive in fact, interviewed a very heroic Philippine Navy Captain Santiago whos going out and helping people. Ive seen the work that is being done and the work that isnt being done. Perhaps, even as importantly. The Sanchez is welcome to go there and I would urge her go there. I dont know if she has but her husbands the interior minister Im sure she can arrange her flight. - He played again the video where Korina reacted about his report. Lets remember, I assured you a clinic several days ago that was at the airport. That the doctors even said that they didn’t have enough food. They didn’t have enough water. For the hundreds of people they are seeing every single day. That they didn’t have enough supplies. That’s a clinic at the airport. If any clinic in the entire disaster zone should be able to receive aid quickly and easily, it’s the clinic at the airport and they were not getting it. I don’t what the situation is today. I certainly pray to God that it is a better situation than it was even two days ago. The president of the Philippines has also counseled foreign journalists that they should be accurate in their reports. We certainly appreciate that counsel. Accuracy is what we strive for. I read in the paper today, for some may have been able to read the news. The President also said in the speech, that the media should use a role to uplift the spirits of the Filipino people to find stories of resilience, of hope and faith and show the world how strong the Filipinos are. I would actually say that all we’ve long, in every report we’ve done, we have shown how strong the Filipino people are. Filipino people, the people of Tacloban and Samar and Cebu, and all these places, where so many have died. They were strong not just to survive the storm. But they are strong to have survived the aftermath of the Storm. They have survived for a week now often with very little food, with very little water, with very little medical attention. Can you imagine the strength it takes to be living in a shack, to be living, sleeping on the streets next to the body of your dead children. Can you imagine that strength? I can’t! And I’ve seen that strength day in and day out here in the Philippines. And we honor them with every broadcast that we do.
Posted on: Sat, 16 Nov 2013 05:06:26 +0000