SURVIVORS of the Super Typhoon “Yolanda” on Wednesday urged President Rodrigo Duterte to file charges against officials of the Aquino administration for its allegedly criminal neglect of the victims of the strongest typhoon ever hit the country in 2013.
Lawmakers headed by Anakpawis Rep. Ariel Casilao joined “Yolanda” survivors from Eastern Visayas in demanding that Aquino and his officials, like former social welfare secretary Corazon Soliman, be charged in court for their abject failure to address the needs of the Yolanda survivors.
“We hold the Aquino government responsible for this mess. Three years after Typhoon “Yolanda,” there has been little improvement in the lives of thousands of “Yolanda” survivors despite of billions of pesos worth of government funds and relief aid,” Casilao said.
“That is why the Duterte administration should run after Aquino, Soliman and other officials of the previous government. Its time for them to pay the price for their criminal neglect,” he added.
The Tindog Visayas and People Surge movement, together with other mass organizations claimed that the relief, aid and rehabilitation done during the Aquino administration was inadequate and the local and foreign donations intended for the victims were never accounted for.
The group blamed the Aquino administration for what its members described as “very disappointing and lackluster performance in the rehabilitation and reconstruction effort.”
Citing reports, the group said that of the comprehensive plan targeting 205,000 housing units for the typhoon victims, only one percent or 25,000 units were completed.
Some of these were in Hernani, Eastern Samar, where only 200 out of 900 housing units were completed by the National Housing Authority.
In addition, last January 2016, the National Economic and Development Authority said that only 6,049 housing units were completed out of the 26,511 in Tacloban City.
“Inadequate services such as clean potable water and electricity mars this relocation sites on top of lack of livelihood for the relocated families,” groups said, adding that financial assistance for Yolanda victims has not even be completed with about 14,000 still to receive Emergency Shelter Assistance I.
In the province of Aklan, it is estimated that more than 19,000 plus households were not able to receive ESA and failed to benefit from the various cash for work assistance schemes due to patronage and anomalous implementation of ESA, People Surge said.
This developed as Casilao said “thousands of eligible victims of Typhoon Yolanda were disregarded with no explanation at all.”
“There have been reports that even relief goods were left to rot by the previous welfare agency while anomalies of fund misused has yet to be investigated,” Casilao said.
In agriculture, he said many coco farmers and poor peasants continue to have a hard time as the past administration failed to provide funds and services. Moreover, the prices of basic goods and services are relatively high.
