Still a long way to go in Cebu for post-Yolanda rehabilitation

CEBU, Philippines - Today marks the first anniversary of super typhoon Yolanda but authorities have yet to complete the rehabilitation of damaged and destroyed classrooms and health facilities.

Department of Education-7 Head of Infrastructure Vic Yntig admitted that a lot still have to be done before the full recovery of affected schools in northern Cebu.

“It’s a challenging gap. Our hands are tied at the local level because funding and appropriation come from the central office. We can only hope that at the soonest possible time the repair and reconstruction of damaged classrooms will be completed,” he told reporters.

Rehabilitation of northern Cebu school buildings is funded by several sources.

“In the case of northern Cebu, we have mixed funding source. We have the Quick Response Fund, the Basic Education Facilities Fund, among others. We are trying to maximize every possible source,” the DepEd official said.

Meanwhile, the Department of Health is likewise not yet finished in the rehabilitation of health facilities.

These include those in the towns of Bantayan, Bogo, Borbon, Daanbatayan, Madridejos, Medellin, Pilar, Poro, San Remigio, San Francisco, Sta. Fe, Tabogon.

Two tranches of funding has been allocated for rural health units, barangay health stations, and hospitals.

The first tranche amounted to P21.30 million and the second one was P19.1 million.

As of November 4, DOH-7 has noted 20 completed structures, with construction of 31 is ongoing, two are up for bidding, and seven needs realignment of budget; all under the first tranche.

For the second tranche, 49 projects have been obligated, five for realignment, and 10 received 50 percent of the appropriation.

DOH-7 Civil Engineer Joey Salagantin said that in all, 33.89 percent of the projects have been completed, 52.54 percent are still being built, and 3.39 percent are for bidding.

Yesterday, a day before the first anniversary of Yolanda, different government agencies recalled the relief and restoration efforts made and on what level of improvement has been done in the Visayas region.

In a forum entitled “Post-Yolanda Press Briefing: Rehabilitation and Rebuilding Phase” organized by the Philippine Information Agency at the Central Command inside Camp Lapu-Lapu  in Barangay Apas, Cebu City, the Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, DepEd, and the US Navy commemorated the Yolanda catastrophe and gave updates where they are now in their rehabilitation and their recovery efforts.

Yolanda destroyed 60,095 houses and damaged 65,666 more. Of the funds intended for repairs, only five percent was allocated so far for Cebu.

“Daghan na kaayo mi’g nadungog na mga reklamo sa mga mayor, pero amo silang gipasabot nga huwat-huwat lang ta maabot raman gyud ni, mahatag ra man gyud ni siya. Ang last nakong nadunggan, we are trying our best na magawas before the year ends pero partial-partial gihapon siya.” said Maria Laurimas Lee, DSWD-7 manpower development assistant. —Jessa J. Agua, USJR Masscom Intern Lengy Mae Mariot/RHM (FREEMAN)