MANILA, Philippines — The procurement of tarpaulin sheets to serve as shelters for families turned homeless by Typhoon Odette is only a temporary and quick fix as the procurement of housing construction materials is yet to start in January, Malacañang explained on Wednesday.
Cabinet Secretary and acting presidential spokesperson Karlo Nograles is responding to a query on why President Rodrigo Duterte opted to order the procurement of tarpaulins instead of construction materials to help the homeless victims of the typhoon.
Nograles said the purchase of construction materials “will come” but it has to undergo a procurement process and delivery, which could take a long time.
For now, tarpaulins are a quick fix, he said.
He also explained that the tarpaulins are requested by the local government units and by their constituents themselves.
“‘Yung mabilisan at agarang solusyon na kinakailangan ng ating mga constituents ngayon na naapektuhan ng Typhoon Odette are the tarpaulins,” he said in a Palace briefing.
(What our constituents need for now is the immediate solution for those affected by the typhoon.)
“This is the fastest way while waiting for the construction materials,” he added.
Quoting Housing Secretary Eduardo del Rosario, Nograles said procurement and delivery of construction materials “will be undertaken from January to March of 2022.”
“Ang pinakamabilis na solusyon which ito rin ‘yung pinawagan ng constituents is the tarpaulins then we will be sending the construction materials after it goes through the procurement process,” he said.
(The fastest solution, which is also requested by the constituents themselves, is the tarpaulins. Then we will be sending the construction materials after it goes through the procurement process.)
Duterte earlier instructed Social Welfare and Development Secretary Rolando Joselito Bautista to supply tarpaulin sheets and lumber from uprooted coconut trees to the displaced families so that they could make temporary shelters.