Palace calls for simple Christmas celebration in
wake of Yolanda devastation
Malacañang on Saturday urged the public to keep
this year’s Christmas simple, in solidarity with those affected by super
typhoon "Yolanda" (Haiyan).
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte
also said some government agencies have decided to donate to Yolanda’s victims
the funds that would have been spent for a Christmas party.
“Sa atin, importante ang essence ng celebration
sama-sama tayo kahit sa opisina o tabi-tabi sa mesa, happy na tayo (For us,
what is important is the essence of the season, that we be together even inside
our own offices),” she said on state-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan.
Yolanda, one of the most powerful cyclones in
recent history, battered Visayas and Southern Luzon earlier this month.
Some companies had canceled plans for a Christmas
party this year, and instead will donate the funds to be spent for the party to
aid Yolanda’s victims.
Valte said government agencies have similarly
responded to this in past years.
“Alam ko may mga ahensya nag-declare quietly and
internally ido-donate na lamang nila ang kanilang pang-Christmas party sa mga
nasalanta ng Yolanda. (I know there are some agencies that internally declared
they would donate their Christmas party expenses to victims of Yolanda),” she
said. PND (jl)
Palace supports peace panel’s call for
humanitarian ceasefire
Malacañang on Saturday backed the call of the
Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process for a humanitarian
ceasefire with communist rebels, for the sake of helping victims of super
typhoon "Yolanda" (Haiyan).
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte
said the Palace fully supports such a call to the communist New People’s Army.
“Suportado natin ang panawagan ng OPAPP (We
fully support the call of the OPAPP),” she said.
On Friday, the OPAPP called on the NPA to effect
an indefinite ceasefire for the sake of Yolanda victims.
The OPAPP said the government “needs all the
help it can get,” even after the global community has responded generously.
“We call on all Filipinos to set aside the
politics and ideologies that have divided us, and with arms linked kapit-bisig,
together surmount this crisis,” it said.
It particularly urged the Communist Party of the
Philippines to extend a humanitarian ceasefire “indefinitely and nationwide,”
and join the rest of the country in mobilizing resources to help those
affected.
“Our armed forces and police have changed their
mode of operations from armed resistance to unarmed resistance, rescue, relief
and rehabilitation in Yolanda-affected areas. We invite our brothers and
sisters in the New People’s Army to do the same by participating in this
national effort,” it said. PND (jl)
Government irons out relief delivery schedules,
routes for Yolanda-affected areas
Government teams involved in delivering relief
items and services to Leyte communities affected by super typhoon
"Yolanda" (Haiyan) have drawn up schedules and routes to make sure
residents there get the needed aid, Malacañang said Saturday.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte
said some 80 personnels of the Department of Social Welfare and Development had
been deployed to distribute food, with help from village officials.
“To make certain that all affected towns are
provided relief goods everyday, the government teams on the ground established
a delivery schedule that specifies which town should be reached for a
particular round of relief operation,” she said on state-run dzRB Radyo ng
Bayan.
Also, she said 14 hospitals are now operational
throughout Leyte, including seven in Tacloban City.
So far, she said the remains of 392 people have
been buried.
Valte said there are presently 20 local and
national responder teams and 21 international humanitarian groups operating in
affected areas.
An emergency humanitarian radio system called
the First Response Radio (FRR) was set up to provide updated information on
relief and other operations at 98.7 MHz.
Meanwhile, Valte said the government is
exploring alternate routes in Matnog, Sorsogon to deliver relief items to the
affected areas.
“Meron nang ibang route, ine-explore natin.
We’re hoping they continue to work to decongest the bottleneck sa Matnog (There
are some routes being explored. We’re hoping they continue to work to decongest
the bottleneck),” she said. PND (jl)
Palace exec: Yolanda a reminder to international
community to beef up disaster preparedness
The destruction brought by super typhoon
"Yolanda" (Haiyan) should be a reminder to the international
community to beef up disaster preparedness, Malacañang said Saturday.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte
said Yolanda has prompted other countries to pay attention to the importance of
disaster risk reduction.
“Because of the super typhoon, other countries
are paying attention on the importance of disaster risk reduction and
mitigation should be,” she said on state-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan.
The Philippines had suffered extensive damage,
particularly in the Visayas and Southern Luzon, after Yolanda battered the
country earlier this month.
The extent of the destruction brought by Yolanda
had prompted the international community to send aid to the Philippines.
“Patuloy ang pagdating ng pakikiramay sa atin ng
ating kapitbahay at kalapit na bansa. Patuloy tayong nagpapasalamat for all the
aid and assistance, pati volunteers (Sympathy from our neighbors continue to
pour in and we are grateful for all the aid and assistance),” Valte said. PND
(jl)
Palace reassures Tacloban folk of continued
relief, services
Malacañang on Saturday reassured residents of
Tacloban City, one of the areas hit hardest by super typhoon
"Yolanda" (Haiyan), of continued relief and other forms of assistance
in the coming weeks.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte
said construction of bunkhouses for those displaced by Yolanda will start next
week.
“Next week, sisimulan ang construction ng
bunkhouses para sa ating evacuees (Next week we will start constructing
bunkhouses for the evacuees). We are doing to do more and more as each day
passes for them,” she said on state-run dzRB Radyo ng Bayan.
She also said there will be an assessment soon
of the evacuees’ needs.
Valte said the government wants to give them the
option of returning to their homes or going somewhere else.
But for now, she said the important thing is to
provide relief for those affected, along with trauma counseling and stress
debriefing.
“At this time, they will continue to be assisted
by the government,” she said. PND (jl)
Government reaching more typhoon-ravaged towns
to deliver assistance
(TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte) The government reported
that it is reaching more and more typhoon-affected communities to deliver
relief goods after clearing the roads and as more relief items and trucks come
in, according to one government official in charge with government disaster
response.
In an interview here, Interior and Local
Government Secretary Manuel Roxas said he relayed a report to the President
last night noting that the government’s Tacloban relief hub sent 1,930 sacks of
rice, water and canned goods to 23 towns in Leyte.
Roxas clarified that those are not family food
packs usually given by the DSWD but sacks of rice and canned goods coming from
the government being distributed to municipalities. Local officials lead the
distribution of goods to barangays, he said.
Also yesterday, choppers from the air force and
the US military dropped 830 food packs to remote barangays.
In the government’s Ormoc relief hub, Roxas said
that out of 17 towns, the government delivered 11,165 food packs to15
municipalities.
“Ang summary, 38 ng 40 bayan ng Leyte ay
nadalhan ng 45,162 food packs. Iyan ang equivalent; converted na lahat iyan
into food packs,” he said.
The government was able to double the number of
Leyte towns being reached by the relief assistance as more and more trucks
arrive.
“Noong nagsimula tayo Thursday, tig-30 sacks of
rice lang bawat bayan. Kahapon, 60 sacks of rice na,” Roxas said.
Workers work overnight to load relief goods and
then deliver them early in the morning to different communities. Trucks could
now complete three round trips compared to last week’s one and a half round
trip, he said.
“Iyan ang idea dito na tinatayo natin ‘yung
conveyer belt na araw-araw maaasahan nila ito nang sa ganoon ay humupa ang
pangamba at alam nila na mararating na sila sa nakatakdang oras. May
nakatakdang schedule,” he said.
For DSWD’s operations in Tacloban, Roxas said
barangays are organizing to get relief goods from the DSWD. He said out of 138
barangays, 102 barangays arrived at the DSWD center Friday to get assistance.
The DSWD strives to serve all the barangays in
Tacloban, he said. PND (as)
Establishing major supply routes necessary for
quicker relief operations, says official
(TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte) The government has been
establishing the main supply routes going to Visayas to open the region to
outside support following the devastation of typhoon Yolanda last week.
Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel
Roxas said the idea is to create major routes through land, air, and sea so
that relief goods, personnel, and equipment could come in and help in the
ongoing relief and recovery efforts.
“Kailangan ma-establish iyan kasi lahat ng
tulong na papasok dito ay manggagaling labas,” Roxas said.
In terms of devastation, Roxas said the
challenge is not that much in Eastern Samar than in the Tacloban City area. Out
of 24 towns, the focus is nine towns south of Borongan in Samar, he said.
Due to long travel time from Tacloban City going
to those locations, Roxas said they organized the Guiuan relief hub, adding
that the C-130 planes of the Air Force could now land directly there. C-130
planes could also land directly in Ormoc from Cebu or Manila, he reported.
The first two or three days is very important in
establishing the main supply routes so that equipment such as trucks,
payloaders, and other heavy equipment could reach the disaster areas, Roxas
said.
With regards to debris clearing operations,
Roxas said he got a report saying the Debris Task Force was able to clear six
kilometers of road.
But he said there are still some congestion
because the clearing operations concentrates in opening the main supply routes.
“By today, kung ibibiyahe 'yan meron ng two
lanes na pwede na kahit malalaking six-by-six trucks magkaharap, medyo okay na.
Ibig sabihin, mas mabilis ang pasok dito ng mga supply na dumarating sa
airport. At talagang niluluwagan natin ang ating mga main supply routes para
nga mas mabilis makapasok dito ang mga tulong,” he said.
Roxas also reported that there is congestion in
the RO-RO system in Allen and Matnog ports since a lot of vehicles line up to
use the barges.
Only four barges operate in those RO-RO ports
and cannot accommodate hundreds of vehicles lining up, he said.
Transportation and Communication Secretary
Joseph Emilio Abaya has been looking for other operators so more barges could
ferry more vehicles and goods, he said.
The government is also prioritizing vehicles
loaded with relief goods and only allows a small number of private vehicles to
use the RO-RO.
“Seventy-five percent doon sa relief; 25 doon sa
mga pribado at kung may libreng lugar o maluwag pa, saka lang puwede silang
magdagdag,” he said. PND (as)
Govt to volunteers: Self-containment necessary
for smoother operation
(TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte) The government on
Saturday appealed to all the volunteers to be “self-contained” before going
here to ensure the smooth and order flow of relief and recovery efforts to the
areas affected by super typhoon "Yolanda."
Interior and Local Government Secretary Manuel
Roxas made this appeal days after Yolanda devastated parts of Visayas and
southern Luzon.
“I think, sa lahat ng mga sumusubaybay dito,
alam naman po nila talaga na walang imprastraktura dito,” he told members of
the media.
“In fact, isa sa mga task force para sa siyudad
na ginagawa natin ay ang mag-canvass --- ilang kuwarto rito, ilang kuwarto
doon; saan ba may poso..., nang sa ganoon itong mga doktor, itong mga
international relief ay may patutunguhan,” he added.
Secretary Roxas said that the government is
thankful for all the assistance it is getting from various groups.
He emphasized, however, that it is important
that the volunteers who are planning to come here in Tacloban are
“self-contained” so as not to cause burden to the ongoing relief and recovery
efforts by the government.
“Ang importante dapat self-contained po kayo.
Dapat maging self-contained kayo dahil wala ho kayong maaasahan dito. The
normal, regular systems that are present in an urban setting are not available
here. So, for all of the relief efforts, ‘yung
mga taga-labas, dapat self-contained po,” he said.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa tulong pero sana isipin
ito bago dumating nang sa ganoon ay talagang from Day 1, pag-landing pa lang
ninyo, nakatutulong na imbis na kailangan pa mag-setup, maghanap ng kung anong
pension ang titirhan...,” he added. PND (co)
EU praises PH coordination efforts in Yolanda’s
aftermath
(TACLOBAN CITY, Leyte) The European Union (EU)
praised the Philippine government’s initial response to the devastation of
super typhoon “Yolanda,” saying Filipino authorities were able to coordinate
all efforts coming from here and abroad.
European Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, who
arrived here Saturday, acknowledged the colossal scale of Yolanda’s devastation
in the Visayas region, but noted that the Philippine government was quick to
coordinate efforts from different relief and recovery organizations.
“But what I see now is a very significant
improvement. The government has set up their own coordination team in place,”
Georgieva said in an interview at the Leyte Sports Complex.
She said aftermath of the super typhoon was so
traumatic because it left an unexpected disturbance and gigantic impact on the
region.
“And this is a lesson for all of us to recognize
that in a world of more frequent, more devastating disasters, we have to
continually strive to improve our capacity to mobilize our best people for the
most dangerous location,” Georgieva said, adding that the EU had immediately
set up a coordination team in the Philippines right after the devastation.
The EU’s humanitarian team is also in the
Philippines to develop quick response strategies when huge disasters strike,
she said “One of the reasons that we are here is because
for every disaster of this magnitude, we need to learn on the spot what can be
done well and what we can do better,” Georgieva said.
The EU has been here in the Philippines
supporting the country in relief efforts every year with millions of dollars in
contributions.
She also acknowledged that climate change had
been affecting every region of the world and the Philippines was not an
exception.
According to Georgieva, humanity has to have a
mindset of preparedness and prevention and immediate and effective response.
PND (as)
