In the absence of needed utilities and livelihood

TACLOBAN CITY- The Catholic Church has appealed to the city government of Tacloban to stop the scheduled eviction of families hit by supertyphoon “Yolanda” in the city.
Through its social action arm, the National Secretariat for Social Action (NASSA) / Caritas Philippines along with other groups said that about 3,500 Yolanda-affected families in 15 coastal barangays in the city will be “displaced” with this move of the city government.
“Unfortunately, this is not the kind of response that the Yolanda survivors had been praying for,” said a letter from Community of Yolanda Survivors and Partners (CYSP), a coalition of 163 community organizations and 10 non-government organizations including NASSA/Caritas Philippines, Urban Poor Associates and the Canadian Catholic for Development and Peace.
During his visit in Tacloban on November 8, President Rodrigo Duterte ordered the National Housing Authority to finish all the construction of permanent houses and relocate families still living in temporary shelters or in areas declared as danger zones next month.
City Councilor Aimee Grafil, who chairs the committee on the urban poor, human and housing resettlement, said that the city government “is doing its best” to comply with the mandate of the national government to transfer the families who lost their houses due to Yolanda.
She, however, denied that the city will forcibly evict the families, particularly those in the coastal areas. “We cannot force them,” she said. According to Grafil, they need to “meet half-way” with the people who expressed complaint about the plan.
“They need to understand that we are also doing our part,” she said. She added that there are also families who are willing to transfer in the northern relocation sites.
“The National Housing Authority and City Housing (Office) have conducted orientation and consultation with the families,” Grafil said.
She added that the city government has provided water in the relocation sites through delivery trucks every day as part of its commitment to the families.
On Wednesday (Nov. 16), about 500 Yolanda families and Church group leaders trooped to the Sangguniang Panlungsod building to dramatize their opposition on the planned immediate transfer.
The affected families were one in saying that while they want to be relocated to permanent shelters, needed facilities and provisions like water and power should also be installed.
On top of these, the families, who mainly depend on fishing, also ask the government to provide them livelihood opportunities considering that their transfer would mean economic dislocation.
Ma. Regie Ruego, focal person of the Pope Francis for Resilient and Co-Empowered Sustainable Communities (FRANCESCO), said that that the mass transfer of the Yolanda families “is for compliance purposes only.”
“They are doing it so they have something to report to Pres. Duterte when he would return in Tacloban by December (to check the progress of the housing resettlement). The issues here are acceptability, accessibility, and the process of resettlement projects are too far from being achieved,” she said. (RONALD O. REYES)

Despite mounting opposition

TACLOBAN CITY – The P7.9 billion tide embankment project designed to shield communities in this city and nearby towns from possible storm surge will proceed before the end of this year despite sustained efforts of some groups to derail the project, a top official of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said.
DPWH Regional Director Edgar Tabacon said the national government has already set aside P2.6 billion funds this year to commence the construction of the seawall.
This will kick off in some parts of San Jose district in this city and Palo town under section 4.
In 2017, the project will get P700 million for construction activities in some coastal villages of Palo and Tanauan towns, covering section 5.
On Nov. 8, President Rodrigo Duterte and DPWH Secretary Mark Villar were supposed to ground break of tide embankment’s section 4 project in Palo town but was cancelled after some groups threatened to hold a protest rally.
“The scheduled ground breaking was just ceremonial. The project will start soon now that the contractor has started the mobilization their equipment to support civil works in some subsections,” Tabacon said in a mobile phone interview.
The government has identified at least 14 subsections that are now in advanced stage. Of the total, three have been awarded to contractors; two are scheduled for bidding; and four with final designs.
Completion of specific designs and program of works is ongoing for other subsections.
Tabacon dismissed claims by protesters that the project was not carefully planned by the DPWH.
“The project design is a product of one year study of the Japan International Cooperation Agency and several consultations with local government units, concerned government agencies, and affected communities. We also highly considered environmental impacts,” Tabacon explained.
The project was supposed to prioritize the coastal communities from Tacloban City’s astrodome to San Jose district but was not pushed through pending the relocation of families within the danger zones.
Tabacon, however, could not say when the project will start in Tacloban due to slow pace of relocation of affected families from coastal areas to the northern resettlement sites.
The 27.3-kilometer tide embankment project stretches from Barangay Diit in Tacloban to Brgy. Cabuynan in Tanauan town.
Sections 1 to 3 are in Tacloban, section 4 are located in the coastal villages of Tacloban and Palo, section 5 are some areas in Palo and Tanauan, and section 6 in Tanauan town.
The four-meter high tide embankment project was an initiaitve of the Aquino administration after the 2013 storm surges wipe out communities in Leyte when it was hit by supertyphoon “Yolanda”. (SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

TACLOBAN CITY – The Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) committed to deliver 50,000 liters of water daily to the northern relocation site, heeding President Rodrigo Duterte’s order to ease the sufferings of families badly displaced by supertyphoon “Yolanda.”
The infrastructure agency converted its four trucks intended for maintenance works into delivery trucks carrying water storage bladders.
Last week, the DPWH main office brought two trucks to this city intended for water service of families now living at the resettlement sites.
Each water bladder can store 10,000 liters while each truck holds 8,000 liters of water.
The volume is enough to supply the needs of 500 families living at Villa Sophia in Barangay Tagpuro and Villa Diana in Brgy. New Kawayan, Edgar Tabacon, DPWH regional director, said.
The city government, local water district, and some non-government organizations support the water needs of other resettlement sites.
“We will continue to bring water to relocation sites for as long as the medium term or long term water supply projects are not yet done,” Tabacon said.
During the 3rd anniversary commemoration of Yolanda on Nov. 8, Duterte asked Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Dino and government agencies involved in reconstruction works to ensure enough water supply in relocation sites.
Earlier, the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) has approved the P159 million water supply plan as a medium term solution to the water shortage problem at the resettlement area.
The project will run for six months while waiting for the implementation of the P527 million level 3 Tacloban North Water Supply Project of LWUA and Leyte Metropolitan Water District (LMWD).
The LMWD and DPWH agreed to iron out issues related to right of way acquisition needed for the installation of water pipes. (SARWELL Q. MENIANO)

TACLOBAN CITY- The regional office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development has urged local government units (LGUs) in the region which have not liquidated their social pension grants to indigent senior citizens to settle their cash advances for the pension program to have a continuous assistance for the beneficiaries.
DSWD-8 Director Restituto Macuto in an interview said that as one of its major programs and services of the DSWD, his office is currently evaluating the implementation of the Social Pension Program and at the same time urging the LGUs as implementing partners to fast track their liquidation process.
Macuto said that as much as possible his office is looking forward that no single LGU will be left behind in implementing the social pension grants to indigent senior citizens in the region.
“We are requesting earnestly for the other LGUs that are not updated with their releases to be more proactive in complying with the documentary requirements. The amount given to beneficiaries is just so small but for them, especially those older people who are less fortunate that even their own family members cannot afford to support them, is something very valuable for them,” Macuto said.
Macuto said that in 2015, there were only three municipalities in Eastern Samar, two in Southern Leyte and one in Northern Samar which have not yet made their liquidation.
The DSWD director added that for the current year, out of 143 LGUs across the region, 108 LGUs that have not yet accomplished and submitted their liquidation reports.
He added that his office has extended coordination to these LGUs so that the cash grants will be downloaded to them as soon as possible.
For this year, Eastern Visayas received an allocation of P527 million for the social pension program intended to benefit 87,920 senior citizens who are to avail P500 monthly pension.
(RESTITUTO A. CAYUBIT)

PALO, Leyte – The computer examination meant for aspiring government employees has been suspended in the past four months due to unstable internet connection.
The Civil Service Commission (CSC) computerized examination was last used by examinees on July 29 this year, according to CSC assistant regional director Rowin Riños.
“The internet provider from our central office could not supply sufficient internet connection simultaneously with other regions. This glitch had been happening even in the past years, but it was still manageable,” Riños recalled.
She said that she is unsure when the examinations will be available again but he assured that their central office is doing their best to fix the internet problem.
Since last year, there were already 117 examinees who went through the automated test in the region. The center has 18 available computers housed at the CSC regional office here.
Similar to the paper and pencil test, the automated examination lasts for three hours and 10 minutes.
Launched in 2014, the examination is a system that automates and integrates each step in the administration of computerized examination, making the entire process faster, easier, and more efficient.
It is undertaken by the CSC in collaboration with the Advanced Science and Technology Institute, the research and development arm of the DOST.
Account registration is done online through the website www.comex.csc.gov.ph. In this phase, an individual personally encodes his or her personal information.
After creating an account, the applicant will gain access to weekly examination schedules – dates, time and venue of the test as well as those offered by the different regional testing centers.
An applicant may then choose from among the online offerings and make a reservation.
With the suspension, applicants can take the exam through paper and pencil test scheduled twice a year in different province.
(SARWELL Q.MENIANO)