Anticipating the impact of what might be super typhoon “Pepeng,” President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared yesterday the entire country in a state of calamity to ensure that all government resources would be ready for a worst-case scenario.

MANILA, Philippines -- Anticipating the impact of what might be super typhoon “Pepeng,” President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo declared yesterday the entire country in a state of calamity to ensure that all government resources would be ready for a worst-case scenario.

The declaration of a state of calamity clears local government officials to tap 5 percent of their funds for calamity purposes, and trade officials to set price ceilings on commodities, officials said.

Pepeng (international code name “Parma”) slowed down at sea yesterday afternoon, prompting the Pagasa weather bureau to warn residents of Metro Manila and surrounding areas to prepare for the possibility of the typhoon changing direction and passing close to the metropolis.

At a press conference, Dr. Prisco Nilo, Pagasa director, expressed concern over Pepeng’s slowdown, which, he said, was caused by a high-pressure area in Hong Kong that was blocking its northward progress.

This could cause the typhoon to linger longer in the Philippines and dump more than the usual rainfall, Nilo said.

Arroyo decided to expand the coverage of the state of calamity to the rest of the country after presiding over a meeting of the National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) at the municipal hall in Cainta, Rizal.

The meeting, aired live on government-run TV and radio, was called to enable Cabinet and local officials to plot contingency measures in anticipation of Pepeng’s expected landfall in extreme northern Luzon.

It was Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro who announced on TV the expanded state of calamity that initially covered only Metro Manila and at least 23 provinces battered last week by Tropical Storm “Ondoy.”

In Malacañang, Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said: “The President agreed to declare the archipelago under a state of calamity for two reasons -- for local government units to have access to calamity funds and [subsequently] be more prepared, especially in areas threatened by Pepeng, and to address rampant overpricing.”