Local execs should lead rehab efforts for faster results, says lawmaker

Leyte Representative Ferdinand Martin Romualdez INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Letting local leaders take charge of reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts in typhoon-ravaged areas would hasten recovery in these devastated places, according to lawmakers from an independent bloc in the House of Representatives led by Leyte Representative Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.

Romualdez, whose own province bore the brunt of Super Typhoon Yolanda’s wrath last November, said the best way to ensure that the recovery phase would pick up was to funnel the resources to the local officials so that they could implement the projects, instead of having national agencies lead the efforts.

“They (national officials) should just be supervising and asking what is needed on the ground. They should just download [the resources], anyway local officials are accountable since the [Commission on Audit] is there,” Romualdez said at a press briefing.

According to him, some people in the disaster-stricken areas were of the impression that the involvement of the heads of national agencies was slowing down rehabilitation efforts instead of speeding them up.

What happens is these officials would move in and out of the province, so the people would have to wait. But local officials stay in the area 24 hours a day, seven days a week, he pointed out.

Romualdez’s position was supported by Buhay party-list Rep. Lito Atienza, who said the national government should trust local government units more since they could do a faster job of helping their own communities, which they are expected to know inside and out.

“We have to learn how to exercise local autonomy. In this case, more than at any time, let the local officials handle the job–not from Manila, not from any reconstruction czar–and be accountable,” Atienza said.

“Anyway, these local officials are elected by their communities. They should know the problems better than anybody else and they will build or rebuild faster with the full support of the community members,” he added.

Romualdez said the national government’s response has not been enough, as the Palace itself has admitted.

But he added that people have been trying their best.

The government has a P100-billion reconstruction and rehabilitation fund for calamity-stricken areas, though only P20 billion has been programmed, and the rest would be sourced from loans.

Former Sen. Panfilo Lacson has been appointed rehabilitation czar to lead efforts to help the ravage provinces get back on their feet.

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