AT LEAST P1.788 billion will be needed for the rehabilitation of the landslide-hit areas in Naga City and the recovery of its survivors.
This amount is based on the Post Disaster Needs Assessment (PDNA) endorsed by the City Council of Naga on December 12 to the National Economic Development Authority in Central Visayas (Neda-7) and the Regional Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (RDRRMC-7).
The three-year investment plan, which will be implemented from 2019 until 2022 and composed of infrastructure, social development and cross-sectoral projects, was presented by Neda-7 Regional Director Efren Carreon during the Regional Development Council (RDC) fourth quarter full council meeting yesterday, December 14.
The funding sources for the implementation of the projects are the Naga City local government unit (LGU), Cebu provincial government, National DRRM fund, national line agencies and the private sector.
“Humana man ang budget for 2019. Pero duna may mga quick response fund like the National DRRM fund nga pwede ma-avail. Adto na nato ma-pasa. Kining 2020 [projects] i-apil na sya for budgeting inig 2020. Gi-endorse nato ni para di makalimtan sa mga agencies,” Carreon told Cebu Daily News in a separate interview.
(The proposed budget for each agency for 2019 has been submitted. However, there are quick response funds like that of the NDRRM that we can avail of. We will take it from those funds. For the projects to be implemented in 2020, we will endorse that to the agencies so that they can include that in their 2020 budget.)
The rehabilitation and recovery programs for 2019 amount to P461.92 million and P382 million in 2020.
The biggest bulk of the investment plan for 2019, P184.5 million, is allocated for the development of the site where the 444 households from the critical zone in the periphery of ground zero will be relocated.
The site development, which will make the relocation site compliant with the Balanced Housing Development requirement of national laws, will be implemented by the Housing and Land Use Regulatory Board (HLURB).
The National Housing Authority (NHA) will come in after, to construct the first phase of the socialized housing project for the displaced families. At least P86 million is initially appropriated from the 2019 NHA calamity fund for the construction of the first 192 housing units.
The 380-meter portion of Pangdan River, which was covered by the landslide debris, is allocated with P150 million from the NDRRM fund for the restoration of the original water path and the stabilization of the slope near it.
Apo Land and Quarry Corp. (ALQC), the quarry firm that operated most of the Mineral Product Sharing Agreement (MPSA) sites in Naga City, is also conducting the hazard reduction plan (HRP) at the ground zero of the landslide area in Sitio Sindulan.
The HRP includes the construction of a P47-million Sindulan Safety wall, a 180-meter long and 10-meter high safety gauge, surrounding ground zero. ALQC will shoulder the cost of building the wall.
Disaster resiliency
The NDRRM would also pay for the construction of a disaster-resilient evacuation center in the city estimated to cost P36 million. This will be implemented by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD).
On Thursday, Naga City Mayor Kristine Vanessa Chiong announced that the Mines and Geosciences Bureau (MGB) Central Office has given them the go signal for the evacuees, whose houses were located within the red and green delineated zones, to go home.
An Information, Education and Communication (IEC) meeting between the evacuees and city government was conducted since Thursday, December 13, to inform the evacuees of the development and to educate them of the guidelines that they need to observe when they return home.
The signal for the 975 families, involving 3,815 individuals, to go home came with the endorsement of the harmonized and revised reassessment of the delineated critical zones surrounding the landslide’s ground zero in Sitio Sindulan III, Barangay Tinaan.
A Flood Early Warning System (FEWS) worth P50,000 will also be established by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in Naga City to help the residents be more vigilant during the rainy season.
Ruth Alensonorin, the city’s Information Officer, also told Cebu Daily News that the evacuees will be receiving cash assistance of P3,000 and Christmas goodies from the city government after they attend the IEC with the mayor.
Aside from the infrastructure projects for disaster resiliency, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is also tasked to come up with a total of P4.4 million worth of livelihood projects for the landslide survivors and displaced households.
“I-identify pa na based on the consultation that will be conducted with the LGU and beneficiaries,” Carreon said.