Complex to rise in Palo, Leyte for papal visit

A complex named after Pope Francis is expected to rise in typhoon-battered Palo, Leyte province, in time for the papal visit in January next year, according to an official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

Over Church-run Radio Veritas, Palo Archbishop John Du Wednesday disclosed that the construction of the Pope Francis Complex Center would soon start in the compound of Metropolitan Cathedral of our Lord’s Transfiguration in the town of Palo.

The complex, which will comprise of an orphanage, a chapel, a clinic and a home for the elderly, will be funded by Pontifical Council Cor Unum for Human and Christian Development, said Du, treasurer of the CBCP.

Du said he was confident that the structure would be finished before the visit of Pope Francis to the country. He also expressed hope that the Holy Father would also find time to drop by the center as he visits towns ravaged by Supertyphoon “Yolanda” and the people who survived the catastrophe.

Final details

The archbishop also disclosed that a number of representatives from the Vatican would be arriving in the country next month to finalize the details of the Pope’s visit to the country.

According to Panfilo Lacson, presidential assistant for rehabilitation, Pope Francis should visit not only Tacloban City, considered to be Ground Zero of the destruction wreaked by Yolanda, but also other areas where there are success stories on efforts by people to stand on their own feet.

In a church forum recently, Lacson, a former senator, said he could not ensure a complete and total recovery by the time of the papal visit in January next year but that there were already many good things that Pope Francis could witness in the “Yolanda corridor,” referring to the 171 cities and towns devastated by the monster storm.

So far, rehabilitation work completed in these areas, where Yolanda left a wide swath of destruction, was only 25 percent, Lacson said.

Success stories

“If the Pope will go to places ravaged by the typhoon, I hope he does not only visit Tacloban. He could also go to places where there are many success and human interest stories happening while rehabilitation is under way,” Lacson said at the forum hosted by Catholic Media Network.

Among the places worth a visit is Tanauan in Leyte, where a school is being constructed courtesy of two young Filipino-American children from Berkeley, California, who managed to raise $100,000 to help survivors of the typhoon, Lacson said.

In another area in the Yolanda corridor, he also heard a story of a family who returned P3,000 worth of financial assistance because the money given to them was more than the amount they should receive.

“We, Filipinos, should be proud that in the middle of suffering, there are people who are still honest and have high integrity,” he added.

But Lacson said the government—both national and local—would make the necessary preparations once the details of the papal visit were released.

“There will be a massive infusion of resources the moment the President approves the rehabilitation plans in these areas … [Pope Francis] will see a different level [of improvement] depending on the date of his visit,” Lacson said.

Pope Francis announced that he planned to come to the Philippines in January next year.