Malacañang: “The President’s order was based on the request of the local government units and their constituents.”
Here’s what Malacañang said about President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to buy “trapal” or tarpaulin sheets to help victims whose houses were destroyed by typhoon “Odette”.
On Wednesday, the Palace said that the President’s order to buy “trapal” to help victims whose houses were destroyed by the typhoon was only for immediate relief, and that the government procurement of construction materials will follow suit.
Cabinet Secretary and acting Presidential Spokesperson Karlo Nograles said during the Palace briefing that those tarpaulins were the immediate needs on the ground and the President’s order was based on the request of the local government units (LGUs) and their constituents.
Nograles also said that the procurement of housing construction materials for the local government units hit by the typhoon will be undertaken by January to March 2022.
“Ito ang mabilis, agarang solusyon, for tarpaulins to act as temporary shelters, while waiting for the construction materials. The sending of housing construction materials will come later,” Nograles said. “This [timeline] is because of the procurement and delivery process,” Nograles added.
READ ALSO: President Duterte Eyes Fallen Coconut Trees, “Trapal” For Temporary Shelter Of “Odette” Survivors
The DHSUD (Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development), in coordination with International Organization for Migration and the USAID (United States Agency for International Development), earlier handed over a total of 5,598 shelter-grade tarpaulin sheets to typhoon-hit communities in Bohol, Cebu, Southern Leyte, and CARAGA region.
On Wednesday, the NDRRMC (National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council) said that a total of 1,073,538 families or 4,176,567 people were affected by the typhoon in around 6,000 barangays.
At least 305,229 were displaced from their homes and some of them were currently staying in 1,201 evacuation centers.
The NDRRMC said that the most affected areas were Palawan, Bohol, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Southern Leyte, Negros Oriental, Leyte, Dinagat Islands, and Surigao del Norte.
At least 531,128 houses were damaged — 172,294 totally and 358,834 partially. A total of PHP 16,715,334,982 worth of damage in infrastructure and PHP 5,517,549,728 in agriculture were also reported.
Earlier, the NDRRMC said that typhoon “Odette” could be considered the fiercest tropical cyclone to hit the Philippines this year.
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