Under Lacson, typhoon rehab will be quicker, Aquino hopes

Former Sen. Panfilo Lacson. INQUIRER PHOTO / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines—President Aquino on Tuesday expressed optimism that the rehabilitation of the regions devastated by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” will be achieved a little more quickly with the appointment of ex-senator Panfilo Lacson to head the reconstruction efforts.

“Having Ping Lacson at the center…a no-nonsense guy, focused solely on Yolanda rehabilitation, will undoubtedly achieve the targets sooner,” he told the Bulong Pulungan forum on Tuesday.

“And that is, I guess, why we look at the unique capabilities of Mr. Lacson to be able to deliver,” he said.

Aquino has tapped Lacson, a former police chief, to lead the rehabilitation efforts in Leyte and Samar in an as yet undefined job description, but which the self-styled “Mr. Incorruptible” ex-senator construes as mainly guarding the massive donations pouring in from the international community from being stolen.

As of Tuesday, the government listed a total of P22.07 billion in foreign aid pledges from different countries. The total assistance actually received stands at P531.1 million, according to the Foreign Aid Transparency Hub.

Red Cross reaction

The Philippine Red Cross (PRC) said Tuesday it is open to working with Lacson, “especially if it’s a real call for a national master plan for recovery and rehabilitation.”

“We have to work with the government since we’re part of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC), but we must maintain our independence. Of course, we will work together and we will cooperate to avoid duplication, to avoid multiple standards. But we have our own standard also,” PRC secretary general Gwendolyn Pang told a church-sponsored forum on Tuesday.

Asked what she thinks about Lacson’s capability to handle the task, Pang said: “I really don’t know the experience of Senator Lacson in terms of rehabilitation and recovery. Perhaps he has the experience or maybe he is the best person to be given that assignment or responsibility.”

Pang expressed the hope that Lacson would be open to suggestions from different stakeholders.

She said the PRC was looking forward to meeting with Lacson to discuss the rehabilitation efforts in the affected areas, but it has not been called to a meeting yet.

3-year reconstruction

The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), meanwhile, said the government will need at least P15 billion for the construction of temporary shelters for the typhoon survivors in the Eastern Visayas, which could take three years.

“The repair and rehabilitation of roads, bridges, municipal buildings, rural health units, hospitals, schools and other public infrastructures can be completed in one year. But it’s the shelter program that will take some time,” said DPWH Secretary Rogelio Singson in a television interview.

“Putting up the bunkhouses and other temporary shelters will most likely take three years, which is fast enough,” he said.

Singson said the P15 billion will also go to “construction materials the agency plans to provide calamity victims who intend to rebuild their own homes.”

The DPWH “plans to utilize prefabricated housing parts, which can be dismantled and used again in the future,” he said.

The agency’s Shelter Action Plan will “also require the employment of many construction workers,” he said.

Tesda courses

He said the DPWH has asked the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda) to “start conducting crash courses on carpentry, equipment operation and other construction-related activities.”

“Without these training courses, we might find ourselves short of construction workers,” he warned.