BACOLOD CITY – The provincial government of Negros Occidental is tapping the P50 million given by Malacañang to feed the Kanlaon evacuees and the site development of permanent evacuation sites in La Castellana and Bago City.
This follows the local government units (LGUs) in Negros Occidental affected by the eruption of Mt. Kanlaon, asking for augmentation funds from the national government, to feed their respective evacuees after the end of the provision of hot meals from the provincial government on March 7.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson announced on Tuesday that they will start the third wave of feeding for the internally displaced persons (IDPs), through its community kitchen within this week, with funds to be taken from the P50 million.
“This time, we included rice in the feeding,” Lacson said, noting that in two previous feeding programs of the provincial government, local government units provided the rice during the delivery of food to evacuees.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) reported that a total of 4,319 families, composed of 13,959 individuals, are staying inside and outside of evacuation centers in Negros Occidental alone, as of March 11.
Lacson said that P14 million will be used for the site development of the permanent evacuation site in La Castellana, P1.3 million for the improvement of the evacuation center in Bago City, and the remaining amount will be used to feed the Kanlaon evacuees.
Donato Sermeno III, regional director of the Office of Civil Defense Negros Island Region, earlier said La Castellana and La Carlota City in Negros Occidental, and Canlaon City in Negros Oriental, have requested financial aid from the national government, with the endorsement of the OCD, to feed their respective residents affected by the eruption.
The IDPs, who are residents of communities within the six kilometer permanent danger zone of Kanlaon Volcano, have been staying inside and outside of evacuation centers for more than three months, since the eruption on December 9 last year.
Lacson said that local officials of the affected communities, especially Mayor Alme Rhummyla Nicor Mangilimutan, expressed concerns on the depletion of their disaster Quick Response Funds, as a lot of the funds have already been spent for the Kanlaon situation in the first quarter of the year.
The provincial government hired some IDPs as job order workers, to manage its community kitchens, especially in La Castellana.
On the other hand, the Department of Social Welfare and Development reported that as of March 10, it has extended assistance amounting to P67,536,993.32 to residents affected by the Kanlaon eruption. (Gilbert Bayoran via tvds)