Gov’t shelter agencies go easy on flood victims

Vice President Jejomar Binay (pictured) has instructed the management of all housing agencies under him as chair of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council to extend assistance to employees affected by flood. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—The country’s key shelter agencies have agreed to go easy on collecting debt payments involving borrowings in areas ravaged by the recent flooding in Luzon even as more corporations engage in philanthropy targeting calamity victims.

Home Guaranty Corp. (HGC), Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) or Pag-IBIG and the National Housing Authority (NHA) all agreed to offer a moratorium of at least three months on installment payments.

More corporations have also embarked on disaster response initiatives to help affected families.

Local fastfood giant Jollibee Foods Corp. (JFC) is donating P2 million, which will be turned over by Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF) to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to augment relief efforts.

JFC and JGF have likewise donated sacks of rice to families in evacuation centers in coordination with the local government units of Cavite (Cavite City, Kawit, Bacoor and Noveleta), Pampanga (San Fernando) and Bataan (Dinalupihan).

Like in previous years, JFC and JGF have turned over their in-kind donations to the GMA Kapuso Foundation, ABS-CBN Foundation, Alagang Kapatid Foundation, Gawad Kalinga and Philippine Red Cross in order to reach out to as many affected families as possible, JFC said in a statement.

For its part, the Aboitiz Foundation has pledged to donate nearly P1 million worth of relief packs for distribution to affected families in Taguig City evacuation centers.

“The Aboitiz Group is always quick to respond to calls for help, especially in times of natural calamities. As soon as we were able to ensure our team members’ safety, the Aboitiz Foundation right away got in touch with the Taguig government to offer whatever help we could in this time of need,” said Augusto P.I. Carpio III, Aboitiz Foundation chief operating officer.

Relief packs

A total of 2,500 relief packs—which contain essential goods such as soap, shampoo, toothpaste and toothbrushes—were donated by the Aboitiz Foundation as of Wednesday afternoon.

The Aboitiz Foundation has also extended help to Bay, Laguna, a province hard-hit by the recent rains and floods. About P27,000 worth of relief packs were delivered to the municipality of Bay while P100,000 worth of relief packs were also delivered on Tuesday to the Laguna provincial government. All in all, the Aboitiz Foundation has donated P927,000 worth of relief packs in Taguig City and Bay, Laguna.

The foundation is also working with Weather Philippines Foundation for accurate and real-time weather updates per city, which can help in disaster and risk preparedness.

The Metrobank Group, led by GT-Metro Foundation (GTMF) and Toyota Motor Philippines Foundation (TMPF) pledged a total of P3 million to boost funds for flood relief operations.

A portion of GTMF’s donation will be used to distribute more than 60,000 bottles of 500-ml mineral water among families in Regions III, IV-A and NCR through the Department of Health.

“The GT-Metro Foundation has monitored the situation since the flooding started and we have received calls for assistance” said GTMF executive director Aniceto Sobrepeña. “Upon the instruction of the group chairman, Dr. George S.K. Ty, we selected institutions which are capable of extending help to many beneficiaries as well as to areas where the state of calamity has been declared,” he added.

The Ty family foundation has allocated a calamity assistance fund in response to the continuing need for humanitarian assistance to victims of current and future natural calamities.

Binay directive

Vice President Jejomar Binay has instructed the management of all housing agencies under him as chair of the Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council (HUDCC) to extend assistance to affected employees.

“We will be assessing the damage caused by the floods. That will be the basis for deciding whether the moratorium will run for three or six months,” HGC president Manuel Sanchez said.

Affected buyers of HGC properties need not pay their monthly amortization for the duration of the moratorium. No penalty will be charged.

Homebuyers affected by the floods are encouraged to avail of the program by submitting the accomplished application form at the HGC office.

Binay announced in its Twitter account that Pag-IBIG and NHA would likely offer such a moratorium. “The moratorium on payments is our way of helping our borrowers cope with the losses caused by the massive flooding,” he said.