President Aquino's handling of typhoon disaster under scrutiny

Four days after the strongest storm in history ravaged the central Philippines, CNN asked President Benigno Aquino how he felt about the idea that his presidency would be defined by the way it handled the disaster.

He didn't answer the question, but two days later a presidential spokesman announced what amounted to an unequivocal reply: President Aquino was assuming command of all relief operations. His communications secretary, Sonny Coloma, said that "the president, as chief executive, is supervising the entire operation and he is directly assisted by the executive secretary and the cabinet secretary."

In taking control, the 53-year-old Aquino was in effect publicly taking full responsibility, staking his name on the outcome of the colossal rescue and relief efforts. He might not have had much choice. According to congressman Barry Gutierrez, an Aquino ally, "he's the president, he has to be the one on top; whether or not he personally takes charge, it's still going to be laid at his doorstep, particularly if government handling is not that good."

Aquino's move was inevitable: normally, in any Philippine disaster, it's the officials of the affected provinces and cities who take the lead. But with their police and workers dispersed or killed, equipment destroyed and supplies washed away, mayors found themselves helpless. In the case of Tacloban city, there was a complete breakdown of local government.

So far many Filipinos have been critical about the government's handling of the disaster. In the week that followed Super Typhoon Haiyan, known as Yolanda in the Philippines, relief efforts were marked by frustrating slowness, confusion and a lack of clear lines of command.

For the first six days, the government distributed only 50,000 "food packs" containing 6 kilos of rice and canned goods each day, covering just three per cent of the 1.73 million families affected, according to government figures