Defensor says fund for infrastructures damaged by Typhoon Frank

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

PANAY Island will get a least P2 billion from the supplemental budget passed by Congress to rehabilitate areas devastated by three typhoons.

House Majority Floor Leader Arthur D. Defensor Sr. said part of the P12-billion supplemental budget will go to repair and replacement of infrastructures in Panay that were damaged by Typhoon Frank last year.

Defensor said he will push for the increase of the allocation for Panay from P2 billion to P3 billion.

“P2 billion is not enough to repair and replace infrastructures that were destroyed at the height of typhoon Frank. I will push for additional funds under the supplemental budget,” Defensor said.

Defensor said the National Disaster Coordinating Council will set the guidelines for the disbursement of the supplemental budget.

“But the local disaster coordinating councils will submit their respective reports and request for funding of priority projects,” he added.

Defensor earlier threatened to block the passage of the supplemental budget in the House of Representatives if Panay was excluded from the allocation.

The House has approved the Paglaum Fund for the post-Typhoon Frank rehabilitation efforts. But the revenue source of the fund – the Simplified Net Income Taxation Scheme – is still pending in the Senate.  

Both the House and Senate passed the supplemental budget by approving a joint resolution authorizing the executive department to spend P12 billion for immediate relief of the victims of Typhoons Frank, Ondoy and Pepeng.

The additional allocation will be drawn from the “unprogrammed funds” in the 2009 budget, particularly the proceeds of the national government share in the Malampaya natural gas extraction.

The government’s share from the Malampaya operations is around P14 billion.

The supplemental budget is on top of the P5 billion in donations and grants from foreign governments.

Government financial institutions – GSIS, SSS and Pag-IBIG – set aside a total of P11 billion in lending facility to their respective members.

Defensor: Panay rehab must be included in P10-B supplemental fund

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

HOUSE Majority Floor Leader Arthur D. Defensor Sr. said he will insist that Panay will be included in the resolution allowing President Gloria Arroyo to look for funds for the rehabilitation of areas devastated by the series of typhoons.

Defensor said he will push for the allocation of funds for the post-Typhoon Frank rehabilitation of Panay, particularly his home province of Iloilo.

The House of Representatives is planning to pass a P10-billion supplemental budget to be used for the rehabilitation of areas devastated by Typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng.

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) had declared the national government’s calamity fund has been depleted and there are no available funds for the P10-billion additional allocation.

The House is pushing for the approval of a joint resolution with the Senate to allow President Arroyo to realign unprogrammed government funds for the supplemental budget.

Defensor said he will block the joint resolution and P10-billion supplemental budget if Panay is not included in the measures.

“We have suffered for more than 1 year since Typhoon Frank hit (Panay) and many damaged bridges, roads and other infrastructure have yet to be replaced or repaired. If Panay is included, I will work hard to pass the resolution and supplemental budget in the House,” Defensor said.

Congress is working to pass the resolution and supplemental budget before it goes on recess October 16. There were also proposals to hold special sessions to fast track the passage of the said measures. 

Right after Typhoon Frank hit Panay, Congress passed the P8-billion supplemental budget, dubbed as Paglaum Fund, for the island’s rehabilitation. But the budget’s accompanying revenue measure, the Simplified Net Income Taxation System (SNITS), is still pending in the Senate reason why the national government has yet to release the funds.

The SNITS is seen to raise some P11 billion, most of which will be set aside for the Paglaum Fund.

So far, the national government has released P481 million for the dredging of the Iloilo and Aklan Rivers and repair of 13 destroyed bridges, roads and other government infrastructures in Panay.

Ilonggo leaders last July asked for another P900 million from Malacañang for Panay.

The DBM Secretary Rolando Andaya had said that out of the P2 billion allocated this year, the calamity fund is now down to P100 million.

The national government now plans to increase the budget of agencies that deal with calamities.

The DBM is also considering a proposal to use collections from the Road User’s Tax to fund relief and rehabilitation efforts.

The Philippines usually racks up P15 billion in calamity costs every year from its average of 20 tropical storms yearly.

Andaya said the government can easily replenish the calamity fund of the various agencies involved in disaster relief and management.

In 2007 and 2008, the government spent more than the money allocated for calamities. In 2008, for instance, it spent around P4 billion.

It has been more than a year since Typhoon Frank hit the Western Visayas region. It has left a devastating mark in the province of Aklan. Not only that, Frank scared the hell out of fellow Aklanons. It was more of like a nightmare that we are all trying to forget and escape.

But just 3 weeks ago, the country has suffered under the hands of another strong Typhoon Ondoy. Leaving a wreck out of Manila and nearby cities. Both poor and rich alike, all seek shelter and help to help save their lives from the raging flood. Hundreds of people lost their loved ones and thousands has lost their properties and decades of savings in just less than 24 hours. Not even a week after Ondoy, another Typhoon has hit the country and left hundreds of people homeless is the upper part of Luzon.

I am scared. In fact, I have stopped watching the television since. I have stopped monitoring my Facebook and twitter account for updates. My heart can no longer bear the pain, guilt and hurt seeing my fellow kababayans cry over their lost loved ones. Seeing the fear in their eyes of what the future might bring. Knowing that they dont have enough to hang on to till tomorrow.

These past event has awakened the trauma brought by Typhoon Frank last year. A fear that Ive been trying to conceal. I fear that each passing day, Earth is slowly deteriorating. I fear that my daughter and grand daughters wouldn’t have the same liberty that we once had to play and experience the beauty of mother nature. A fear that there will come a time that there’s isn’t any place left where my kids and whole family will be safe.

As fear slowly takes control of all my thoughts, I prayed. That I and all the Filipinos alike will have more strength to face the future. That may each of these typhoons serve as a lesson for everyone to ponder. That we should all set aside ourselves and our own personal gains and remember to take more care of what we currently have. Not for us… but for the next generations to come…

We encourage the Philippine Government, Asian Governments, combines like the United Nations, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, to support this milestone activity from the remainder of 2009 up to 2010.

ANNUAL ECOLOGY CRISIS CONFERENCE

The Resource Recovery Movement will hold the first 2010 Hazards Mapping and Environment Summit (Eco 2010 Summit) in Manila, Philippines. This is ultimately borne about by the tremendous changing of the Philippine landscape and those of other countries in the Pacific Rim in the last few decades. All efforts towards risk mapping in relation to calamities and disasters in the past should now take into consideration the great shifts and transformations in land mass, the enormous amount of rainfall brought about by Climate Change and many new factors that were heretofore not factored into national and sub-national planning by governments as well as even by business establishments and non-government organizations.

Click this link to sign up: Join Resource Recovery Movement!

The 2010 Hazard Mapping and Environmental Summit (HMES) is intended to develop better approaches to mapping risks and dangers to communities in the Philippines and other countries with tropical climates. It takes a cue from the recent experience in China, Indonesia and the Philippines, notwithstanding the previous experiences in Thailand, Bangladesh, Pakistan where scores of people died due to unforeseen occurrences during the incidence of a natural disaster: earthquake, typhoon, tsunami and other calamities. The databasing, mapping and full coordination of efforts towards use and sharing of a full function GIS on hazards, volcanoes, water, flood, forests in the Philippines and Asia, vulnerability areas, liquefaction potential, crisis and hot spots is long due because of the long-running phenomenon of Climate Change in the planet. This is also significant in that the Philippines, among other countries, lies in the Pacific Rim of Fire where a large number of earthquake faults lie.

The most important value of the conference is to determine the plan and the cost of implementing such a plan to make the Philippines and other participating nations safer from increasingly hazardous calamities.

Note: The organizers reserve the right to make minor changes in the Conference details prior to the actual Event.

HMES 2010 Organizers

“What I often say to my audiences is that now is the time to play the Save the World Symphony. It is a vast orchestral piece, and you are but one musician. Yet you are not required to play a solo, but you are required to figure out what your instrument is and play it as well as you can.
Because in the end – the environment is not just something else to worry about. It is connected to all things we already worry about – our children, our health, our homeland and love with all our hearts.”

Sandra Steingraber
The Obligation to Endure…Again…

I believe that the quote above is timely in the sense as far as it goes when it comes down to the issue of climate change especially now as we countdown the 100 days that would make or break our future as a people.
There are 100 days remaining until the UN Climate Summit in Copenhagen, where urgent action is needed by world leaders in order to save our climate.

100 school children aged between 12 to 14, wave umbrellas in a colorful parade to form a human clock

It’s time to stop talking and start taking action.

All over the world – activists from different organizations of varied, causes, ideologies and political persuasions staged public events to highlight the number of days left for our leaders to take action, in what I like to believe is a global symphony of urgency to make known the seriousness of climate change’s impending threat.

By now you may have read a number of stories on the events that unfolded to countdown the 100 days before the climate meetings in Copenhagen. It is in line with this that I hope to share the contributions of the Southeast Asian people to Steingraber’s  global Save the World Symphony.

Bankok: The final countdown

The familiar riff of Europe’s The Final Countdown came into my mind at the sight of the 100 school children aged between 12 to 14, waved umbrellas in a colorful parade to form a human clock and the messages “Tck Tck Tck and “ACT NOW!” as the called on world leaders to protect the planet’s future, outside United Nations Building in Bangkok which will host a crucial UN climate conference in about one month.

The activity is a part of the launch of “Tcktcktck” campaign which aims to warn the world leader that they have only 100 days to go before governments must agree on a new global climate treaty that will protect millions of lives and the planet’s ecosystem from devastating climate change impact.

Pasig City: The revolution is just a t-shirt away

“So join the struggle while you may
The Revolution is just a t-shirt away”
Billy Bragg

Billy Bragg might have something else in mind when he originally wrote this song, but I think he’ll forgive me for using this last verse of Waiting for the Great Leap Forward to describe the monthly Philippine Greenpeace supporter activity at Tiendesitas, where they did a make your own Greenpeace campaign t-shirt activity, that had messages for climate protection. Perhaps the Energy [R]evolution is just a t-shirt away indeed…

Quezon City: Solidarity

“Start your own revolution, cut out the middleman”
Billy Bragg

350 Minutes of Climate Action: A Climate Action Festival

As Filipino Greenpeace Supporters made t-shirts I along with a handful of Greenpeace volunteers in the Philippine office joined in solidarity with groups, grass root activists, individuals, local community folks, punks and whatnots at 350.org’s climate action festival at the Quezon City Memorial Circle’s Picnic Pavilion to further underscore the clamour for a strong and equitable climate deal in Copenhagen..

Standing in front of the crowd made me both encouraged me as I find it really good and at the same time alarmed at the fact that the issue of climate change or global warming is no longer in the language of a handful of eco-warriors like Greenpeace, mainly because the it also means that the broadening of people’s awareness on climate change also means that it has now evolved into a far greater problem that is no longer confined to environmentalists but also to that of regular folks.

The highlight of the event is on the emphasis of taking collective personal action on environmental issues that include climate change and climate justice

Iloilo: U-Turn the Earth

More than a hundred bikers toured Iloilo today to launch the "yoU-Turn the Earth" campaign, marking the 100-day countdown to the Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen

“Slam on the breaks and make a u-turn from the brink!”
Robert Hoyt

I’ve forgotten the title of the song that I quoted above from a longtime Earth First! activist and singer-songwriter Robert Hoyt. But I believe it is very relevant to what Greenpeace did in Iloilo to launch of “yoU turn the Earth”—a series of high profile public activities to raise awareness on climate change and its solutions.  The event in Iloilo’s capital highlights the province’s vulnerability to the worst onslaught of climate change, particularly massive floods caused by extreme weather such as Iloilo’s devastating experience with Typhoon Frank last year.

Jakarta: 11th hour

“Do you know where the power lies? and who pulls the strings
Do you know where the power lies it starts and ends with you”

- Rancid

Activists from Greenpeace, WWF, Oxfam

This is a very apt description of the message that was conveyed by activists from Greenpeace, WWF, Oxfam warned world leaders that “delays kill”. The leaders of the countries who have yet to make a right stand on climate change are warned by the activists of the possibility that they will sink along with climate change if they do not immediately take action on global warming.

Moving on…
Climate change is a reality. All of us can attest to the sudden unpredictability of the weather.  Today, our world is hotter than it has been in two thousand years. Scientists have predicted that by the end of the century, if current trends continue, the global temperature will likely climb higher than at any time in the past two million years.

One of the things that I am proud about Greenpeace is the fact that Greenpeace is not a protest organization. We are an action oriented organization in the sense that we take action in defense of nature. It is in this vision that allows us to take on the big powers responsible for environmental destruction and demand change, thus leading to positive change for both people and nature.

I hope that in the unfolding of the 100 days to Copenhagen our collective actions along with that of the global ‘save the world symphony’ will end in a harmonious crescendo of a future free from the spectre of climate change.

Click here to take action

Chuck Baclagon

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

THE city of Iloilo and neighboring municipalities should combine their efforts and resources to respond to natural calamities and disasters.

This is the approach adopted by the World Bank (WB)-assisted Disaster Risk Management (DRM) project of Iloilo City which kicked off last week.

Jorge Ebay, WB consultant and DRM coordinator, said Iloilo City should forge strategic partnership with its immediate neighbors in responding to disasters.

“If we want to pursue disaster risk reduction (DRR) objectives, we should focus not only in Iloilo City but on neighboring areas as well so that we can have an integrated approach” Mr. Ebay said.

Ebay said Iloilo City was caught off guard when typhoon Frank hit June 21, 2008 and flooded the city and its neighboring towns.

“Typhoon Frank made the city government realize its incapacity to manage the impact of big disasters,” Mr. Ebay added. 

The DRM project, dubbed “Technical Assistance to Support Planning for Recovery and Reconstruction of Iloilo City”, aims to identify major hazards and risks within Iloilo City; assess its capacity in responding to hazards and risk; build its capacity for DRM and enhance strategic partnerships with neighboring municipalities.

The project will also validate the damages and losses incurred by Iloilo City after Typhoon Frank and identify gaps in the recovery and reconstruction plan of the city. 

The WB’s Global Facilities for Disaster Risk Reduction (GFDRR) allotted US$250,000 assistance to Iloilo City’s DRM project.

Last week, representatives from Iloilo City and members of the Metro Iloilo Guimaras Economic Development Council (MIGEDC) underwent a seminar on hotspot assessment.

The MIGEDC members are the municipalities of Oton, Pavia, Sta. Barbara, San Miguel, Cabatuan, Maasin, Alimodian, Leganes, Leon, and province of Guimaras

“The city government and neighboring towns looked into Iloilo City’s human and built environment characteristics vis-à-vis the potential impact of climate change and natural hazards. This is to facilitate coordination and possible collaboration and resource sharing for projects that will jointly reduce vulnerability to natural disasters, such as the environmental protection of the watershed area,” the DRM project brief said. (With reports from PNA)

By Francis Allan L. Angelo 

THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has ordered the release of P481 million for the repair and rehabilitation of infrastructures in Panay that were damaged at the height typhoon Frank.

The funds were released through Special Allotment Release Order No. A-09-03564 issued last May 29, 2009.

The money will be taken from the calamity fund of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) regular budget this year.

The national government set aside the fund upon request of Rep. Arthur Defensor Sr. (3^rd district, Iloilo) and Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas Raul Banias.

The two officials asked President Gloria Arroyo to allocate money for the partial rehabilitation of Panay while Congress has yet to pass the accompanying revenue source of the P8-billion Paglaum Fund.

Banias said the funds will be used to repair nine bridges, national roads and dredging of Iloilo and Aklan Rivers.

“But this money is not enough, it’s not even 20% of the total amount needed to repair and rehabilitate all damaged structures in Panay,” Banias said.

The Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) earlier passed a resolution asking Congress to approve the revenue measure that will become the source of the Paglaum Fund.

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

THE upcoming election period might hamper the rehabilitation of Panay after the destruction caused by typhoon Frank on various sectors last year.

This was the concern raised by local officials as the release of the P8-billion Paglaum Fund drags for of lack of revenue sources.

Presidential Assistant Raul Banias said the election period might overtake the release of the fund, thus delaying further the repair and rehabilitation of damaged infrastructure in Western Visayas.

“We just hope that it will not be overtaken by the political season so we can implement the needed rehabilitation and repair of critical infrastructure,” Banias said.

The Omnibus Election Code bans the release, disbursement or expenditure of public funds for public works 45 days before any regular election.

Public works are commonly referred to infrastructure projects consists of roads, bridges, railways, airports, seaports, communication facilities, irrigation, flood control, water supply and sewerage, solid waste management, energy and power systems and school buildings.

The public works ban for the 2010 elections starts March 26, 2010 and ends on election day, May 10, 2010.

Coupled with this ban on public expenditures is another limitation on the actual construction of public works and availment of any device undertaking future delivery of money or goods chargeable against public funds. The ban similarly starts 45 days before any regular election.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesperson James Jimenez said they can exempt certain public works from the ban for humanitarian reasons. Critical infrastructure projects can also be exempted from the ban, Jimenez added. 

While the House of Representatives and the Senate had approved the proposed the supplemental budget for the Paglaum Fund, it has yet to be released because its accompanying revenue source remains pending in Congress.

The main source of the Paglaum Fund is the Simplified Net Income Tax Scheme (Snits) which is expected to rake in an estimated P12 billion.

The Snits is still pending in the Senate committee on ways and means chaired by Senator Panfilo Lacson. The committee failed to deliberate on the tax measure before Congress adjourned this month.

Banias said he got the commitment of the House and Senate that both chambers will fast track the passage of the Snits bill.

Even if the Snits bill is passed this year, revenues from the tax measure will be realized next year yet.

“We have assurance from the Department of Budget and Management that they can get the funds from other sources,” Banias said.

President Gloria Arroyo earlier released P487 million for the initial rehabilitation and repair of damaged infrastructures in Panay.

Meanwhile, the Regional Disaster Coordinating Council (RDCC) passed a resolution Monday urging the Senate to fast track the approval and release of the Paglaum Fund.

The RDCC passed the resolution during the commemoration of typhoon Frank’s havoc in the region last year.

 “The passage of the bill is urgently needed to completely restore, particularly in Panay Island – the food basket of the region,” said PNP Regional Director and RDCC Chair Isagani Cuevas.

Typhoon Frank affected 2,674 barangays and 360,516 families. A total of 827 families were left homeless. It also killed 274 people and injured 1,523 others while 174 people remain missing.

The agriculture sector was also heavily damaged: P1.279 billion in crops; P3.746 billion in fisheries; and P31 million inn livestock.

Billions worth of infrastructures were damaged and destroyed: P9.06 million worth of health and government facilities; P2.187 billion of roads and bridges; and P221 million worth of school buildings.

SAILOR BACK HOME Petty Officer Grace Geroche of USS Ronald Reagan paints a classroom at the Pavia National High School. An alumna of the school, Geroche was one of the 18 sailors who visited Sunday to take part in the renovation program to commemorate the first anniversary of typhoon Frank. (Photo by Tara Yap)

By Tara Yap

TO mark its relief efforts in last year’s typhoon Frank, a US naval carrier revisited Panay over the weekend.

Eighteen sailors of the USS Ronald Reagan visited Pavia, the town hit hardest by flood waters last year.

The sailors, 8 of whom are of Filipino descent, stayed for approximately five hours at Pavia National High School where they helped members of the Philippine Navy paint a classroom and cement a walkway near the gym.

“I’m happy to be back,” said 23-year-old petty officer Grace Geroche, who is an alumna of the town high school.

“It’s nice to help out.  It’s just a way to give back to the community where I grew up,” added Geroche.

Geroche was born in the US, but spent her growing up years in Pavia . 

She went back to the US and joined the US Navy after graduating college at Iloilo Doctor’s College (IDC) last 2007.

A crowd of residents welcomed the Americans at the school with Mayor Arcadio Gorriceta warmly recalling the assistance of US troops and other private sectors in the aftermath of the typhoon.

In Iloilo alone, 135 people died and over 170,000 people were displaced after typhoon Frank battered Iloilo and the rest of Panay.

The USS Ronald Reagan delivered more than 500 pounds of food, water and medicine last year to typhoon victims in Panay despite threats made by local communist guerrillas to attack them.

Time indeed flies so fast. It has already been a year since Typhoon Frank hit the whole Western Visayas. I remember the fear, the sadness, and chaos that was brought by the tragedy leaving hundreds of family homeless.

I remember how my daughter and looked by our window watching the trees fell right in front of us. The loud whistling sound of the wind, the falling trees and raging waves crashing towards the sea wall in New Washington. Our house by then is near the sea so we could actually hear and see the waves crashing, big rocks started to smash the sea walls and houses near it. It was like a scene in a movie. A scene I never imagined possible in real life.

Just hours after, the scenery changed… Our kitchen windows are all broken, our computers inside the office soaking wet… and the community suddenly became like a ghost town… No electricity, no water for seemingly endless days.

I remember the second day after Typhoon Frank we rented a generator. And I started posting pictures about the typhoon… suddenly it spread like crazy, hundreds of people suddenly visited my blog, I received tons of emails asking about how the situation was.

More importantly this gave me a chance to help out in my own little way. I remember the happiness I felt when I was able to deliver a message from the overseas to one of their family members here. Finding their relatives in their behalf…. I let our neighbors use the computers for free in case they would try to call their relatives abroad.

Typhoon Frank may have caused damages to the people here in New Washington and the whole Aklan, however, the tragedy also brought out the best in everyone. Uniting the community and people as one. Sad truth behind is, we have to suffer and survive the wrath of nature in order to bring out peace, love and support from one another.

365 days after, our province get back into shape. Everything went back to normal or should i say even better. New houses, new infrastructures, new life.

By Tara Yap

COMMEMORATING the tragic effects of typhoon Frank has taken a festive twist.

Barangay captains of Jaro district in Iloilo City, which was hit hardest by the flashflood brought about by typhoon Frank June 21, 2008, will mount a fiesta to show that they have overcome the tragedy.

Jonas Bellosillo, president of the Association of Barangay Captains (ABC)-Jaro chapter, said the fiesta will celebrate the fighting spirit of the Ilonggos amid the damage and deaths caused by typhoon Frank.

Bellosillo told The Daily Guardian that nightly food festival and live bands in Jaro Plaza started Thursday until this Sunday night.

The event is one of the sidelights of the week-long commemoration spearheaded by the Iloilo City government in partnership with San Miguel Corp (SMC).

Bellosillo invite residents of Jaro and the rest of Iloilo City to come to Jaro Plaza and celebrate the resilience of the Ilonggos in the aftermath of typhoon Frank.

The typhoon Frank experience also brought to fore the importance of being prepared for natural and manmade calamities.

ABC Jaro and the City Crisis Management Office will mount a rescue drill in Jaro River Saturday morning and a commemorative program at the plaza Sunday.

The drill will feature the skills and equipment of the city in responding to calamities, especially flood.

Bellosillo said Bayani Fernando, Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) chair, is expected to arrive June 22.

Fernando will turnover donations of essential rescue gears including searchlights, bolt cutter, ax, and a stretcher to carry an injured person.

The MMDA helped clear and rehabilitate Iloilo City after typhoon Frank by sending a cleanup team. 

Frank destroyed P500-million worth of crops and P1.7-billion worth of properties in Iloilo.

In Iloilo City and province, 135 were reported killed while scores missing.

The flood engulfed around 80% of Iloilo City, affecting 48,836 families or 244,090 persons. The worst hit district was Jaro, where the flood waters were reported to have reached a high of 2 meters, submerging almost the entire district.

In Iloilo Province, among the most affected towns include: Oton, Miagao, Leganes, Pavia, Zarraga, Leon, Janiuay, Leon, Pototan, Dumangas, Barotac Nuevo, Ajuy, and Carles.

The Provincial Disaster Coordinating Council said at least 91,183 families or 177,700 persons were affected by the typhoon.

The National Disaster Coordinating Council said typhoon Frank’s damage to roads and bridges accounts for P2.3 billion, most of them in Aklan, Iloilo and Capiz.

Damage to school buildings was at P455 million mostly in the Panay region, the Calabarzon Region, the Mimaropa region and the National Capital Region.

Damage to other facilities, including hospitals, was estimated to reach P2.3 billion.

Nobody in Iloilo will ever forget June 21, 2008. It was a day of death and destruction for the entire city and province. It was a day of tragedy. It was a day of heroism. It was a day that put Ilonggos to a big test of will and character. The stories about what happened that day are as many as the people who suffered from nature’s wrath with the worst flood to hit Iloilo in ages.

This is my personal story.

I went to sleep the night before thinking that Typhoon Frank stuck to its projected path and steered clear of Iloilo province. The super typhoon appeared to veer toward Capiz province, the usual path of typhoons in recent years, and there was no indication Iloilo would be hard hit. I treated my media friends, David Sinay and Francis Angelo,  to premium brandy at Ralph’s that Friday evening. We talked about politics, and nothing about the weather gave us cause for alarm. The drinking session ended at about midnight just as the typhoon was building up its full force. But I went to sleep not knowing that trouble was brewing up in the mountains.

When I woke up at 5:30 a.m., I was surprised to find 3 missed calls from Gov. Tupas registered on my two cell phones. This could only spell trouble. At once, I rang up the governor. “There’s flood in Barotac Viejo,” he told me without preliminaries. That shook me up, because I don’t remember the governor’s hometown ever getting flooded.  His son, mayor Raul “Boboy” Tupas, had to go back to his town at 4 o’ clock to personally oversee the rescue and relief operations. Many people were trapped in their homes.

There had been no warning from PAG-ASA the day before, so I figured it was just a day of heavy rains in the northern part of Iloilo. In the seven years that Gov. Tupas served as chief executive of the province, the typhoons that were projected to hit us had somehow changed course at the last minute. We even kidded Gov. Tupas that he must have a lucky charm that the typhoons always spared Iloilo.

I decided to get some coffee at the CoffeeBreak in Jaro before proceeding to the residence of Gov. Tupas at M.V. Hechanova in Jaro.  But power for the entire city was down, and CoffeeBreak staff told me they couldn’t do any brewing. I cursed the power outage for depriving me of my Saturday morning coffee ritual. The rain was then pouring in a torrent. Might as well have coffee with the governor, I said.

By the time I reached the governor’s house, I was already getting a clearer picture of the situation through the car radio. Other municipalities were starting to report flooding. In the city, evacuation from flood-prone areas were being ordered. I conferred with the governor for about an hour as we monitored the field reports of Aksyon Radyo. This is turning bad, I remarked to the governor. I asked permission to leave and get ready to coordinate rescue and relief operations at the capitol.  As it was a Saturday, I decided to drop by Aksyon Radyo and check if I could still do my weekly program, “The Capitol in Action.”

The anchorman, Joel Tormon, looked every bit worried about the flow of reports coming in. “Sir, can you give way to our non-stop broadcast and enable us to coordinate rescue efforts?” he asked. I didn’t have to be persuaded. Of course, I replied. I knew that my place that day wasn’t behind the anchorman’s microphone. I needed to be at the capitol to coordinate rescue and relief efforts. I took up position at the lobby information desk of the capitol where there was a landline phone. The capitol’s emergency generator was supplying power to the building, and it was the single most important thing for me that day. I hooked my two cell phones to chargers.

By 9:30 a.m., the calls for assistance were starting to come, first slowly, then in an overwhelming avalanche that kept at least one phone on my ears for several hours. Municipal mayors were calling me to deploy our dump trucks. Volunteer rescue groups started to stream into the capitol lobby, waiting for instructions. They didn’t have to wait long to get assignments. As soon as our trucks arrived, we gave these rescue volunteers target areas. Our priority areas were Pavia, Tigbauan, Sta. Barbara, San Miguel , Leon and Alimodian. The Philippine Army Reserve, among them Atty. (Captain) Eugenio Original, arrived to help in the rescue operations.

There weren’t enough trucks to meet the rising tide of SOS calls. Through text messaging, I kept track of the worsening situation around the province. Most of the municipal mayors were personally directing the crisis management activities for their towns. It was a moment when true leaders were separated from the boys. The mayors were on top of the situation by being there themselves, seeing the crisis as it was unfolding and giving orders on how to carry out rescue operations. Almost everybody was wet from the heavy rain.

By noon, almost all rescue groups have been dispatched to the flooded areas. But I could see that most of the highways were under water, making it difficult for the trucks to make their way to their targets.  One team led by Atty. Original took three hours to reach Pavia. According to him, his driver decided to take a round-about route, going through the Mandurriao highway, and then making a right turn to the Felix Gorriceta Jr. Avenue in Balabag. “But the road was entirely submerged in two-meter deep water,” he reported by text. The driver drove his truck as if it was a boat, using the power lines as his guide.

Along the way, Original’s team also had to stop every now and then, responding to pleas for help from trapped families along the route. The volunteers worked tirelessly, ignoring personal danger, exhaustion and hunger, just to be able to pull imperilled people to safety. Words are not enough to describe the heroism displayed by these volunteers that day. For Original’s team, the rescue work extended until about 9 p.m. Good thing that McDonald’s delivered enough burgers, fries and coke to feed the volunteers when they got back to the capitol that night. It was their first meal after 15 hours!

Gov. Tupas kept abreast of the situation with periodic phone calls to me. He also obtained updates from the Philippine National Police and the military. Our provincial disaster coordinating council was already busy procuring emergency food stocks that would need to be distributed right away to the flood victims. Disaster relief is primarily the responsibility of the municipalities, but we knew that this was more than the usual flood, and the province had to pitch in to help the municipal governments.

I could see that it was impossible to respond to every request for assistance. I must have received a thousand text messages and hundreds of phone calls that day — many from people I didn’t even know but somehow got my contact numbers. Some came from people trapped in rooftops. “Save us, please.” But as the flood waters swelled, it was becoming more dangerous to send our volunteers to certain places where the surging current could easily sweep them to their deaths. I advised our volunteers to exercise prudence. I also texted back to the people asking for help to just stay put where they were. “We are coming to get you,” I told them. I knew that many would have to wait several hours, cold and wet and hungry, before help could reach them. It was a painful period for me, unable to do much for people pleading to be saved.

The magnitude of the flood shocked me. Almost all towns and the lone component city, Passi, were submerged. At about 4 p.m., I went around to inspect the flooded areas. But to my surprise, the whole length of the Benigno Aquino Avenue (Diversion Road) was totally under water. As our heavy truck rolled on, I saw that we were hit by the worst flood in recent history. In 1984, the island was hit by “Typhoon Undang” and the devastation was also tremendous. I was still a journalist back then, and I was one of the few individuals to fly aboard rescue helicopters to assess the damage in northern Iloilo and Capiz province. The destruction wrought by “Undang” was bad, but “Frank” was worse. It’s hard to believe this could happen to us without warning.

We stayed at the capitol until about 10:30 p.m., debriefing the rescue group commanders. There was nothing more we could do that night. Better to sleep and get our bodies ready for another day. As it turned out, it was more than two weeks before I could finally switch myself off from crisis mode. It was an episode that will never be erased from our collective memory as Ilonggos. For the rest of my life, the events that transpired that day, and in the days ahead, will be etched firmly, and I could always look back as if watching a video in HD format — everything unfolding with crystal clarity!

It will be a year tomorrow since we experienced the wrath of Typhoon Frank, international code name Fengshen, which bore down on us with unexpected full strength, having caught us unaware that it changed course and intensified overnight from Signal No. 1 to the maximum, Signal No. 3.

We suffered a direct hit. Thousands of families were instantly rendered homeless.

In the wake of the storm came mud floods. Cars were floating around like oceangoing vessels. People’s homes were emptied of its unprotected contents by the flood, with furniture and appliances floating like so many flotsam and jetsam. People were on rooftops, or being carried away by floodwaters as they were perched on the roof of their houses. For the very first time, floodwaters reached the height of Kalibo Bridge.

Devastation was the order of the day. Thousands died in its aftermath.

We were forced down on our knees not just in supplication but also in abject surrender to the horrible, wretched experience.

Emotionally drained, physically exhausted and financially crippled, the double whammy of the storm and flood sunk us in catatonia.

Indeed, June 21, 2008 will be remembered in infamy through the centuries with stories that leave a bad taste in the mouth. Bad memories made worse by the apathy displayed by people who were supposed to come to our rescue and protect us from further harm.

Personally, I never saw an elected government official or the head of any agency of government, check on the condition of people in the area where I lived. For one whole damned week. Even an elected official who lived just a couple of houses away did not show signs of being at least a concerned neighbor.

Prices went through the roof as sellers took advantage of the situation. While businesspeople were literally making a killing, the local leadership of the Department of Trade and Industry failed to make their presence felt while in the interim, people were forced to pay through their teeth for items supposedly under price control. It took the DTI a couple of days to surface even if the floodwaters were gone on the 22nd.

Political stalwarts came to visit and lo and behold, local officials were very visible, unable to resist the photo ops, which worked both ways. Media was finally aware of the situation, thanks to bloggers who helped spread awareness. If not for their efforts, people would not have known what actually transpired.

Tuesday, the 24th of June was the Feast of Saint John the Baptist, Kalibo’s Patron Saint. In the early morning, church bells pealed and fireworks were launched but no one was in a celebratory mood. It was Kalibo’s saddest Town Fiesta ever.

Thankfully, a huge contingent from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority arrived to help clean up and rehabilitate Aklan. Lo and behold, a day prior to the President’s arrival, NFA vehicles with “Rice for Sale” signs suddenly became very visible, with someone’s mighty magic wand orchestrating the show. But for whose benefit, really? As soon as the President left, the NFA vehicles were also gone.

The thing that really angered people was relief materials that were turned over and “overturned”. And that is putting it mildly. Not surprisingly, a slew of Non-Government Organizations came in and personally handled the distribution of their aid to make sure that people who needed it got it. And that is a fact!

These people have such an unsavory reputation that will stick to them like glue because the experience has been seared in our memories. For them I personally feel revulsion, loathing, repugnance, outrage, detestation, abhorrence, hatred … and spite.

It has been a year. However, what has our government done to help prevent what happened form happening again? To this day, whenever it rains for at least an hour, some of Kalibo’s major thoroughfares would be flooded already.

ConAss is apparently more important. Oh well, let me reiterate: for them I feel revulsion, loathing, repugnance, outrage, detestation, abhorrence, hatred … and spite.

Soon it will be May Day Eve.

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

NO politician will administer the P8-billion Paglaum Fund, according to House Majority Floor Leader Arthur Defensor Sr.

Defensor (3^rd district, Iloilo) said a multi-agency commission will handle the disbursement of the fund which will be used to rehabilitate areas in Western Visayas devastated by typhoon Frank last year.

The Region 6 Rehabilitation and Development Commission will be headed by Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro being the National Disaster Coordinating Council chair, based on House Bill No. 5604.

HB 5604 is the proposed supplemental budget for the Paglaum Fund. It was recently approved by the House of Representatives and is now pending in the Senate.

The commission members are: Regional Development Council chair; Cabinet Officer for regional development (CORD); Secretary of Agriculture; Secretary of Budget and Management; Secretary of Social Welfare and Development; Secretary of Education; Secretary of Health; Secretary of Public Works and Highways; National Electrification Administration administrator; National Housing Authority general manager; and Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas.

The CORD for Western Visayas is Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez Sr.

Rep. Niel “Jun-Jun” Tupas Jr. (5^th district, Iloilo) earlier said Gonzalez should not become a member of the commission. He also fears that his district will not partake from rehabilitation fund.

The Tupases accused Gonzalez as the brains behind the attempt to dismiss Governor Niel Tupas Sr. from office in 2007 for alleged graft.

The commission shall be organized within 30 days after the supplemental budget for the Paglaum Fund is enacted and shall exist for 2 years after its organization.

Defensor said the fund will be released in batches through government agencies tasked to implement rehabilitation and relief projects.

“Politicians who lobby with Congress to handle the funds and implement projects in their constituencies should stop because the fund will only be coursed through the commission,” he added.

The Senate has passed in second reading its own version of the Paglaum Fund bill. The Senate bill is co-authored by Senators Edgardo Angara, Senate committee on finance chair; and Juan Miguel Zubiri, Senate majority floor leader.

“In a matter of two weeks, the Paglaum Fund bill will get Senate approval in two weeks time. The House and Senate versions of the bill are identical. But if there are differences in the two versions, such can be ironed out in the bicameral conference committee,” Defensor said.

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

THE Senate approved Monday a resolution appropriating P8 billion for the Paglaum Fund which will be used to rehabilitate areas of Panay ravaged by Typhoon Frank last year.

Dr. Raul Banias, presidential adviser for Western Visayas, said Senator Edgardo Angara, Senate committee on finance chair, sponsored a bill appropriating P8 billion for the Paglaum Fund.

“Senator Angara sponsored and adopted House Bill No. 5604 which is sets aside a supplemental budget for the Paglaum Fund. He presented the bill in his sponsorship speech in the Senate. Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri co-sponsored the bill. The Senate unanimously approved the measure,” Banias told The Daily Guardian.

Banias said they expect the Senate to pass the Paglaum Fund bill after two or three sessions after it mustered the senators’ full support.

As regards the Simplified Net Income Taxation Scheme (Snits), which is the accompanying revenue measure of the Paglaum Fund, Banias said they are confident that the Senate will approve the tax measure.

“The support shown by the Senate for the Paglaum Fund gave us confidence that the Snits bill will also be passed smoothly. President Gloria Arroyo has already certified the Paglaum Bill as urgent so we expect its immediate passage,” Banias added.

The Snits Bill (House Bill No. 5257) filed by Antique Rep. Exequiel Javier limits the expenses that may be deducted from gross revenues earned by professionals and individuals running their own businesses to arrive at their taxable income.

The bill is in response to complaints that salaried individuals, whose taxes are automatically withheld by employers from their salaries, shoulder a much bigger share of the government’s income tax collection from individuals. 

Earlier reports said the Senate might not pass the Snits Bill because the Department of Finance doubts if the measure will increase tax collections.

The Snits is expected to raise some P12 billion, most of which will be allocated to the Paglaum Fund.

President Gloria Arroyo earlier ordered the release of some P481 million for “critical” rehabilitation projects in Panay.

The P481 million will be used for the replacement of the Tigum Bridge in Cabatuan, Iloilo (P160 million); replacement of the Tubang Bridge in Maasin, Iloilo (P10 million); replacement of the Daja Bridge in Maasin, Iloilo (P10 million); replacement of the substructure of B. Aquino Bridge in Leon, Iloilo (P40 million); and replacement of the substructure of Camanggahan Bridge in Guimbal, Iloilo (P60 million).

Other rehabilitation projects are the dredging of Aklan River (P100 million) and the Dungon Creek in Iloilo City (P50 million), Pototan Road Slip in Pototan, Iloilo (P30 million) and the Misi-Tampucao Bridge in Lambunao, Iloilo (P21 million).

The Department of Public Works and Highways will begin the bidding process of the projects next month while actual works are expected to commence June 2009.

Banias fears repeat of historic floods if Paglaum Fund is doomed

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

ANOTHER massive flooding might devastate the city and province of Iloilo if critical infrastructure projects under the still unfunded P8-billion Paglaum Fund are not realized.

This was the grim scenario painted by Dr. Raul Banias, presidential assistant for Western Visayas, during the Western Visayas Regional Planning Summit at Iloilo Grand Hotel Thursday morning.

“It would be a disaster if the Paglaum Fund is not released before the summer season ends because critical works such as repair and replacement of bridges damaged by typhoon Frank, river and flood control projects and dredging of heavily silted rivers and creeks will be stalled. These projects are important to prevent another flash flood brought about by typhoons,” Banias said.

Banias said he and other Ilonggo leaders have been asking Malacañang to release at least P460million for the repair of vital bridges and dredging of major bodies of water in Panay.

The money, which will be released through the Department of Public Works and Highways, will be used to repair the bridges in Cabatuan and Leon, Iloilo and dredging of the rivers in Libacao, Kalibo and Iloilo City.  

Banias said he observed that some rivers in Panay are heavily silted which could cause flashfloods in surrounding communities.

“In Libacao, Aklan, we cannot see the 3-meter boulders in the rivers because these are already covered by silt. The same is true in Aklan River in Kalibo and the Iloilo River in the city and its creeks. If we don’t dredge these rivers before the rainy season, we might experience the same thing when typhoon Frank hit June last year. Half of the rain that fell during Frank’s height is enough to trigger another massive flooding,” he added.

The release of the Paglaum Fund, which is intended to rehabilitate areas of Panay devastated by typhoon Frank, hit a snag with the delay in the passage of the Simplified Income Taxation Scheme (Snits) bill in the Senate.

The bill is pending with the committee on ways and means chaired by Senator Panfilo Lacson.

Snits bill, which is the accompanying revenue measure of the Paglaum Fund, limits the expenses that may be deducted from gross revenues earned by professionals and individuals running their own businesses to arrive at their taxable income.

Some P9billion is expected to be raised from the Snits bill which will fund the Panay rehabilitation efforts, according to Banias.

If Snits is approved next month, it would be too late as the payment of individual income tax is set April 15. If no other sources of funds are found, the Paglaum Fund will be released next year.

Banias said they continue to coordinate with Malacañang to look for other funding sources to start the critical projects.

Undersecretary Joaquin Lagonera of the Presidential Legislative Liaison Office called Banias the other day to discuss the possible release of only P460million.

Iloilo Jerry Treñas said they asked Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita and Lagonera to ask President Gloria Arroyo to look for other sources.

Treñas said he is worried with the damaged bridges and heavily silted bodies of water which can cause another flooding.

“I need not go far. I will just look at the Dungon Creek behind our house and I can see that it is heavily silted. We are worried that if there are heavy rains again, the flood will rise once more,” Treñas said.

Treñas said he is the least concerned about the political backlash of the non-release of the Paglaum Fund “because I am graduating already.”

“We are more concerned about the effects of the flood on the people and properties. Among the local leaders in Panay, I was most affected because my house was inundated, my children stayed on the roof and my cars were flooded,” Treñas said.

It has been 5 months since Typhoon Frank wrecked havoc in Western Visayas particularly Aklan and vestiges of the destruction are still evident though there has been a marked return to normalcy in the daily life of the average Aklanon. Whether life in Aklan will return to normal still remains to be seen although I firmly believe in the resiliency of the Aklanon in the face of adversity.

Never in the history of Aklan has there been a calamity of such magnitude and destruction that it caught everyone unaware. And this also brought to the fore the state of preparedness of our government agencies to deal with such a disaster. But then again, this is the Philippines and what else is new? Only in the Philippines….

However, disasters or tragedies such as these bring out the best in most people as evidenced by the efforts made by the officers and members of the Ati-atihan Badminton Club in restoring the Ati-atihan Badminton Center which was damaged by Typhoon Frank. You see, the Ati-atihan Badminton Club is a SEC-registered, non-stock, non-profit organization which aims to increase awareness of the sport in the province of Aklan as well as train and develop young athletes to excel in the sport of badminton. The club has been actively supporting the youth through its outreach program which handles a training pool consisting of elementary, high school and college students with potentials in the sport. Needless to say, in the 4 years that the club has been in existence, it has produced athletes for the Palarong Pambansa. The club has also been a benefactor of the Stimulation and Therapeutic Activity Center of Kalibo for the differently-abled children of Kalibo and its environs through the auspices of the Mayor’s Cup held every year.

The destruction of the Center hampered the activities and programs of the Club and efforts were made to rebuild it by soliciting funds from friends, families, private companies, and even individuals. Aside from direct solicitations, the club sponsored several invitational poker tournaments and mahjong canteens to augment the funds from solicitations. We were able to raise the needed amount to rebuild the Center.

It was a daunting task indeed but with the perseverance and determination of all the members, the Club successfully overcame it with flying colors. On November 16, 2008 the Ati-atihan Badminton Center was officially rededicated and blessed with a simple ceremony and thanksgiving dinner. The Ati-atihan Badminton Club is now without a home….we are now focusing on the programs and activities that the we have planned for the year although it was sidelined for a while, at least now it will go ahead full steam.

The experience made us realize that no task is really big when everybody pitches in….the calamity brought out the best and the worst in us but what stands out is that after this, we know that the club and its members can count on each other and that there is no obstacle too ahrd to overcome.

The Ati-atihan Badminton Center before Typhoon Frank

Senator Chiz Escudero: More taxes for Panay fund is wrong

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

USING the rehabilitation of Panay Island in the aftermath of typhoon Frank to raise taxes is wrong, according to Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero.

Escudero, chair of the Senate committee on ways and means, said the P8-billion Panay rehabilitation fund should not become a reason to burden the public with additional taxes.

The rehab fund was originally pegged at P15 billion but it was slashed down to P8 billion because of the ongoing war in Mindanao and the world financial crisis.

Antique Rep. Exequiel Javier, House committee on ways and means chair, said he is planning to increase taxes on professionals in order to obtain the needed funds for Panay’s rehabilitation.

A bulk of the rehabilitation fund will go to repairs and construction of damaged infrastructure and livelihood projects.    

“If President Gloria Arroyo wants to give you P15 billion, she can give you P15 billion, there is no need to legislate a new tax measure. Under Presidential Decree 1177, she has that power. So, she cannot say that we should look for sources,” Escudero said.

Escudero said he fears that the Panay rehabilitation fund might end up like the reformed Value Added Tax “which we did not feel.”

“The windfall from VAT is P17 billion this year alone. If she wants to give you the fund, she can. I will not allow increases in tax just to get funding for this matter. I’m not saying that we will deprive Panay. I’m really against tax raises because this government has enough funds. They should not point to anybody else in looking for funds for Panay,” he added.

The neophyte senator also cited the case of Luzon and Bicol when it was hit by typhoon in 2007 where the government immediately set aside rehabilitation funds without passing new tax measures.

“Why is it that in Visayas there is a condition that the fund will only be provided if there is a new tax measure? There should be equal treatment, if they can do it in Luzon, they should also do it in Visayas and Mindanao,” Escudero said.

He added: “It is the government’s responsibility to help Panay. This is caused by the national government’s neglect of Visayas and Mindanao. Its attention is always on Luzon and Metro Manila. It is time to bring back the funds to Visayas and Mindanao so you will feel that the national government is concerned for you.”

When asked if what could be the Arroyo administration’s motive in the new tax measure, Escudero said “your guess is as good as mine.”

“It is very clear that it (new tax measure) is wrong. Sa hirap ng buhay ngayon, dadagdagan pa ang buwis.”