Yolanda rehabilitation fund reaches P200 B

MANILA, Philippines - The rehabilitation fund for areas devastated by Super Typhoon Yolanda has reached almost P200 billion, Malacañang said yesterday.

Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said the total P199.48 billion came from loans, grants and international donations.

Just over half the money, or P106 billion, had already been distributed, Coloma said.

Of the total, 85 percent was coursed through government agencies, and the remainder through non-government organizations.

More than 60 percent or P126 billion came from foreign loans. The remaining were donations from countries including Australia, China, Germany, Japan, Korea, the United Kingdom and United States.

“We wish to point out that there is a difference between pledged and received donations. ‘Pledged’ means that a foreign country or organization expressed willingness to help but has no legal commitment to follow through,” Coloma said.

“The Department of Finance and the Office of the Presidential Assistant for Recovery and Rehabilitation (OPARR) have undertaken monitoring and accounting of all donations, including grants where the DOF was not involved,” he added.

Malacañang also supported OPARR chief Panfilo Lacson, saying he is still trusted to lead the recovery after Yolanda.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said at a press briefing yesterday that “there is no question” the President still trusted Lacson as the rehabilitation czar.

The vote of confidence from Malacañang comes after Tacloban Mayor Alfred Romualdez called on Lacson to resign during an interview on Tuesday, saying the former senator could not fulfill his function as rehabilitation czar and accused him of having a political agenda.

The two have been sparring this week, with Lacson slamming Romualdez for “hijacking” the Tacloban recovery.

Valte said Malacañang was sure the funds for recovery were going to their intended locations.

“We are certain that the assistance extended to our fellows in Tacloban is substantiated by records and documentation,” she said.

“We are sure Secretary Lacson has every good intention to move along with the rehabilitation.

“I believe Mayor Romualdez acknowledged yesterday there was help given for livelihood and there was help given to Tacloban by government agencies for reconstruction of public buildings,” Valte added.

Valte said the blacklisting of companies that used substandard materials in Tacloban bunkhouses is a possibility.

“That will be something that should be up for major discussion,” Valte said. “There will have to be action taken against them, but it’s not national government that initiates that. The one watching how money is spent is the Commission on Audit.”

Local officials in the Visayas region affected by Yolanda were told by Lacson to direct their requests and damage reports to his office.

The local officials led by Cadiz City Mayor Patrick Escalante in Negros Occidental were told by Lacson during a meeting at the Philippine International Convention Center last Monday that he will accept all the requests and damage reports and forward them to the concerned government agencies.

“We were assured that the government has the funds for the Rehabilitation Master Plan of $3.7 billion or P167.86 billion,” Escalante said.

Lacson also informed the mayors that a total of P6 billion was released by the national government to Tacloban City, debunking claims of Mayor Romualdez that the government failed to deliver rehabilitation projects in the city.

OPARR has also allotted P167 billion for the Comprehensive Rehabilitation and Recovery Plan (CRRP) for the Visayas region.

Of the amount, P3.9 billion is allotted for Negros Occidental under the Typhoon Yolanda Rehabilitation Master Plan up to 2016, according to Karen Jimeno, head for communications and external affairs of OPARR.

Jimeno said P50 billion has already been released, including P11 billion to the National Housing Authority (NHA).

A total of 171 towns and cities were affected by Super Typhoon Yolanda that slammed into central Visayas last year.

The NHA has already provided 2,000 housing units from its total target of 205,128 permanent housing units for those affected by Yolanda.

The biggest challenge of the government is looking for relocation sites since there are still typhoon victims staying in temporary shelters, Jimeno added. – Danny Dangcalan, Evelyn Macairan