Davao City to give P10-M aid to provinces hit by 'Usman'

DAVAO CITY—Dabawenyos are once again showing their readiness to help provinces hit by calamities such as Typhoon Usman, which ravaged several Luzon provinces last month.

This developed after the City Council approved during Tuesday's special session a resolution authorizing Mayor Sara Duterte to use PHP10 million from the city’s Calamity Funds as financial aid to five provinces affected by Usman.

The city’s quick response fund for 2019 amounted to PHP130.8 million, which can be used for local disaster response and aid to other Local Government Units (LGUs) that are under state of calamity. The total QRF is 30 percent of the PHP436.109 million Calamity Funds for 2019.

The City Council held a special session on Tuesday to tackle the request of Mayor Sara to approve the financial assistance to the five provinces.

Receiving the cash aid are Oriental Mindoro, Sorsogon, Albay, Camarines Sur, and Camarines Norte, which will get PHP1 million each.

Alfredo Baluran of the City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (CDRRMO) said PHP5 million of the PHP10 million financial aid will be given to the LGUs in cash, while the rest will be in the form of relief goods for victims, who are still in evacuation areas in the provinces of Sorsogon, Albay, and Camarines Sur.

Central 911 head Emmanuel Jaldon said Oriental Mindoro and Camarines Norte will only receive the cash assistance because affected areas there are still difficult to access due to damage roads.

More than a million families were affected in the five provinces, disaster management officials said. (PNA)