MANILA — As part of the continuing rollout of the “conveyor belt of aid” for typhoon victims, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Monday, Nov. 4, led the distribution of various assistance, including shelter materials, to typhoon-affected families in Batangas province.
Joining the President was Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development (DHSUD) Secretary Jose Rizalino Acuzar and other key government officials involved in the massive disaster response in the aftermath of the havoc wrought by Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine.”
DHSUD facilitated the distribution of home materials and essentials (HOMEs) to 559 families whose houses were either damaged or destroyed by “Kristine.”
A total of 159 families from Talisay town, and 200 families each from the municipalities of Laurel and Agoncillo received HOMEs from DHSUD and its partners.
Each family received HOME package composed of GI roofs, marine plywood, lumbers and nails which are necessary for the repair of damaged residences. The items were provided by Metrobank Foundation Inc.
According to Secretary Acuzar, the distribution of HOMEs was a joint effort of the DHSUD, private partners and the concerned local government units.
All involved offices had mobilized ground personnel since last week for the timely delivery of the said materials.
“Upon receiving the report from our Regional Office on the severe damages to residential structures in Batangas province, we deployed our teams to coordinate with local chief executives and gather data particularly on the number of affected and displaced families,” Secretary Acuzar said.
“This is DHSUD’s contribution to the President’s call for a conveyor belt of aid for typhoon victims. We will exhaust all available resources to extend assistance to our kababayans,” he added.
Secretary Acuzar instructed DHSUD Regional Office 4A to regularly monitor the situation to ensure that all families, particularly those with damaged houses, will be assisted.
Apart from HOMEs, the DHSUD also provides unconditional cash assistance to families whose houses are either damaged or destroyed during disasters.
Earlier this week, DHSUD released cash assistance to 60 “Kristine-affected” families from Daraga, Albay under the Department’s Integrated Disaster Shelter Assistance Program (IDSAP).
Under IDSAP, DHSUD can provide unconditional cash assistance of P30,000 to families with totally damaged houses while P10,000 for those with partially damaged residences brought about by man-made or natural disasters.
On October 26, Secretary Acuzar also ordered its key shelter agencies (KSAs) to implement moratorium on housing amortization to their members affected by “Kristine.”
The Home Development Mutual Fund or Pag-IBIG Fund, the National Housing Authority (NHA), Social Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC) and the National Home Mortgage Finance Corporation (NHMFC) subsequently implemented one month moratorium to member-borrowers.
“Ang utos po ng Pangulong Bongbong Marcos Jr. ay tuluy tuloy na ayuda sa mga biktima ng bagyo, kami sa DHSUD ay patuloy ang pagsusumikap upang makaambag sa adhikaing ito,” Secretary Acuzar stressed. (DHSUD)
