Over 1,300 Yolanda housing units turned over in Capiz

MANILA, Philippines — More than 1,300 housing units have been turned over to victims of supertyphoon Yolanda in Pilar, Capiz, more than seven years since the onslaught of one of the most powerful and devastating tropical cyclones that hit the country.

Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, head of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Unified Implementation and Monitoring of Rehabilitation and Recovery Projects and Programs in Yolanda-affected Areas, led the online turnover on Tuesday.

The 18th virtual turnover of housing units was made in the following areas: Morcita Ville Phase 1 with 988 units and Morcita Ville Phase 2 with 366 units.

According to the National Housing Authority, as of October 2020, out of the planned 123,535 housing units for Region 6, 89,491 have already been completed, with the remaining 22,869 units undergoing construction.

Despite the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Nograles vowed that the government will finish all Yolanda housing commitments.

“That’s the clear directive of the President. The Duterte administration acts and provides concrete solutions to the people of Region 6, especially since this is a known typhoon area,” Nograles said.

“We will continue our work until all the Yolanda housing commitments are concluded,” he added.

Yolanda, considered by weather experts as one of the world’s most powerful typhoons in the past century, caused massive damage in most parts of the Visayas region, particularly on Samar and Leyte, and killed some 6,300 people. — Miggy Dumlao, trainee