Duterte’s promised money won’t be available just yet, only P2b of P10b can be released now.
President Duterte has promised billions in aid to victims of super typhoon Odette, but the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said Wednesday it could not commit a date for the release of funds as the government is still assessing the extent of damage.
DBM acting Secretary Tina Canda said the President has committed to raise P10 billion (not P14 billion as earlier reported) for Odette recovery efforts, but only P2 billion of that is already available through calamity funds, while P2 billion will come from the President’s contingency fund.
The remaining P6 billion will be available once the 2022 national budget is signed, she said.
“We expect the 2022 budget measure will be signed before the year ends, so it’s between after Christmas [and]…the 29th,” Canda said.
Duterte had earlier promised that the funds would be sent to typhoon-ravaged communities on or before Friday, Christmas Eve.
“There is no commitment that it will be distributed by Friday because we are still assessing the total damage and how to distribute the money and how much will be distributed per region and local government uni,” Canda said in Filipino.
Canda said, however, that assistance would be accessible since frontline agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Department of Health have their own quick response funds (QRF). She added that funds could be released if the agencies put in a request to augment their QRF.
Duterte is expected to sign the P5.024 trillion 2022 national budget after Christmas, Canda said, after the spending plan has been vetted.
Senator Juan Edgardo Angara, meanwhile, said it is likely that the calamity funds of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) have been used up.
But once the President signs the 2022 national budget, there’s over P20 billion that can be used to help typhoon victims and those who lost their jobs and their houses, Angara said.
Senator Panfilo Lacson proposed that the NDRRMC be convened immediately so the members of the Cabinet can mobilize the different agencies using their QRF and other relevant appropriations available.
He said the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) should be required to submit an initial Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) in areas devastated by Odette. This will guide the President on how to prioritize aid and assistance based on the needs and extent of damage.
For its part, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should organize a meeting with the different ambassadors to appeal to the international community of nations for assistance just like they did days after the onslaught of Typhoon Yolanda.
Lacson also cited the need to organize te mobilization of the country’s business and private sector to extend assistance in the hardest hit areas. As it is happening now, efforts are disorganized and the interventions of politicians and presumptive candidates are not helping much.
Senator Franklin Drilon said he was saddened by the President’s statement that the government has no money to assist the typhoon victims.
He said the Department of Finance (DOF) can do a “cash sweep” of unreleased funds parked in the bank accounts of national government agencies and government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs).
This was recently done by the DOF to raise funds needed for the COVID-19 pandemic response, he said.
Recent budget hearings showed that national government agencies have very poor disbursement or utilization rates of the funds already released to them. For example, he said the Department of Public Works and Highways disbursed only about 30 percent of the funds released to them. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) can also be realigned for relief operations.
He pointed out there are also billions of pesos parked in the coffers of the Procurement Service of the DBM and the Philippine International TradingCorp. for unimplemented projects.
Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said on Tuesday he has asked the DBM to augment the quick response funds to the regions affected by Typhoon Odette once they are depleted.
Duque, during President Rodrigo Duterte’s Talk to the People, said he already told the regional directors of the typhoon-stricken areas to immediately use their QRFs.
“I have already told all the regional directors of the affected regions and areas to use their quick response funds as soon as possible and I have already asked the DBM to augment their quick response funds in case these are exhausted,” Duque said in Filipino.
Duque said the DOH is continuously monitoring the situation in the Visayas and Mindanao to ensure the swift provision of necessary assistance and health services.
Duterte already signed a resolution declaring a state of calamity over regions hit by Odette last week.
Duterte said these areas include Region 4B, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 13.
He said the declaration will hasten relief and rehabilitation efforts in these calamity-stricken areas.
Odette left the Philippine area of responsibility on Saturday afternoon, after causing “total devastation” in areas along its path.
More than 1.8 million people were affected by Odette’s onslaught, the NDRRMC said on Monday.
Also on Wednesday, Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel said advance dividend payments from 57 GOCCs could help fund the rehabilitation of provinces ravaged by Odette.
“Malacañang can require covered GOCCs to pay in advance a portion of the cash dividends that they are meant to remit to the national treasury out of their net profits this year,” Pimentel said.
“There’s no question the government will need a lot of additional funding to reconstruct mangled public infrastructure such as farm-to-market roads, irrigation systems, bridges, and school buildings,” Pimentel said.
“The government will also have to extend cash aid to affected families to help them rebuild their homes and livelihood,” said Pimentel, whose home province is one of several now under a state of calamity after sustaining heavy damage from the catastrophic late-season storm.
The Philippines has received pledges of assistance from the United States, China, and South Korea.
US Embassy in the Philippines Chargé d’Affaires (CDA) ad interim Heather Variava said the US Agency for International Development (USAID), is providing P10 million in immediate assistance, including food and shelter for communities devastated by typhoon Odette.
Variava said USAID is partnering with Action Against Hunger to provide food, water, hygiene supplies, and other relief items to people affected by the typhoon in Surigao del Norte and Dinagat Islands.
China said it will provide $1 million (about P50 million) in emergency cash assistance to the Philippines “to help the government and people in the typhoon Odette affected areas overcome the disaster and rebuild their homes at an early date.”
This was announced by Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian as he turned over the last batch of 10,000 metric tons of rice to the Philippine government on Dec. 22.
The South Korean government said it will also donate $2 million worth of humanitarian assistance to the country and an additional $50,000 worth of in-kind donation in the coming days for relief response.
Korean Ambassador to the Philippines Kim Inchul made the announcement during his meeting with Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. on Wednesday.
Kim said the US$50,000 will be used to procure and deliver rice to those affected by the typhoon while the $2 million cash assistance will boost the recovery efforts to build resilience and restore livelihoods in communities affected by the typhoon.
Earlier, the US, China, South Korea as well as Japan, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom launched their respective relief operations to help typhoon-stricken areas in the country by sending basic goods, generators, and temporary shelters.