Ruffy Magbanua EVERY time a crisis occurs, most often than not, the finger pointing among the various stakeholders easily come to the fore. Sadly, finger-pointing is here again. Finger-pointing and blame-mongering have never been in short supply whenever disaster strikes. And the key players in this case are our elected officials in particular and the people in government in general.  We, the taxpayers had to stay as usual at the sideline, watching helplessly over them as they throw mud at each other. Ironically, the blame game come in a time when flash floods had already wrought havoc immensely such that no amount of finger pointing could ease the collective pain of flood victims. Because we were again practically caught with our pants down, the blame game, done in the aftermath of the floods, was indeed a display of how inutile our government is in addressing such a massive natural disaster. What is glaringly lacking are results and improved approaches to mitigating risks given the nature of the city’s geographical location and climate. Case in point are the improvements being done along the national highway--from Bugo in Cagayan de Oro to Opol in Misamis Oriental. If one has to closely examine, the leveled-up highway and extended concrete bridges have no match to the recent flash floods. The rampaging waters had overflowed freely over these overlaid concrete, a manifestation that the DPWH roadmap in making the national highway (Recto Avenue) an urban expressway has got a lot of kinks, or flaws for that matter. First to get the flak was Pagasa, the state’s weather bureau over its alleged failure to inform the public beforehand. No less than Senate President Koko Pimentel blamed Pagasa  for its “haphazard advisories.” Second to endure the swat of criticisms were the Telco’s cable wires, found suspended in creeks, entangled in labyrinth with all sorts of trash. And third, the relatively poor planning of DPWH and the private contractors’ alleged changing the rules in the middle of the game. Pointing fingers is always the easiest way out. And if the next flashfloods would again come, expect the same excuse, haphazard as it were. E-mail: ruffy44_ph2000@yahoo.com