Palace: Two years not enough to address needs of ‘Yolanda’ survivors

By: Yuji Vincent Gonzales - 9 years ago

SCENE in Tacloban City a few hours after Supertyphoon “Yolanda” (international name: Haiyan) struck. RICHARD A. REYES

Malacañang on Thursday admitted that two years were not enough to fully address the needs of survivors of super typhoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan), which wreaked havoc in the Visayas in November 2013.

Reacting to pleas aired over a forum on post-disaster reconstruction, Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma recognized the concerns of survivors on water supply and emergency shelter assistance as “concrete,” noting that government agencies have been doing their part to resolve the issues.

“Mainam na doon sa ulat hinggil doon sa forum na ‘yon na idinaraos sa kasalukuyan ay mayroong mga partikular na indibidwal, nakapangalan sila, alam ang address nila, kongkreto naman ‘yung kanilang mga usaping hinaharap doon—katulad ng water supply, ‘yung pagbabayad o pagbibigay ng emergency shelter assistance—dahil diyan ay maaari itong tuwirang tugunan ng lahat ng mga kinauukulang ahensya na nagpapatupad ng iba’t ibang programa,” Coloma told reporters in a press briefing.

READ: PH ‘Yolanda’ rebuilding ‘inadequate,’ says UN

But citing the case of other countries, Coloma said it would take more than two years before Yolanda-affected areas can fully recover from the “wide and deep” scope of devastation.

“Pansinin lang natin na ang pinsala na idinulot ng super typhoon ‘Yolanda’ ay malawak at malalim. At sa karanasan ng maraming bansa, hindi rin naman kakayanin na sa panahon na lumipas na, magdadalawang-taon, na lahat ng pangangailangan ng lahat ng pamilyang apektado ay ganap na matutupad,” Coloma said.

“Kaya sinisikap pa rin ng pamahalaan na pahusayin pa ang paglilingkod-bayan hinggil dito at hinihikayat din ‘yung iba pang mga stakeholders na makiisa para pagtulungan ‘yung paghahatid ng ganap na solusyon sa lahat ng problema,” he added.

Nevertheless, Coloma assured the public that the government still has sufficient calamity funds to deal with the aftermath of upcoming typhoons.

“Ayon kay Secretary (Florencio) Abad, sa pagpupulong noong nakaraang Biyernes, mayroon pang about eight billion pesos na balance sa calamity fund,” he said.

In August, a United Nations representative said that the Philippines has not done enough in rebuilding efforts nearly two years after the disaster, noting that “its attention to ensuring sustainable durable solutions for internally displaced persons remains inadequate to date.”