Iloilo under state of calamity due to ‘Agaton’

The Sangguniang Panlalawigan (SP) of Iloilo on Tuesday approved a resolution placing the province under a state of calamity due to the devastation brought by Tropical Depression Agaton.

With the declaration, the SP also gave the go-signal to utilize PHP65.9 million from the provincial disaster risk reduction management fund quick response trust fund that will be used for preventive measures and needs of residents affected by the floodings due to heavy rains due “Agaton” and the inter-tropical convergence zone (ITCZ) two weeks ago.

Resolution No. 5 of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, presented to the SP and approved during its regular session, showed the flooding has caused around PHP733.3 million in damage to various crops and PHP185.7 million in destruction to provincial roads and bridges.

Further, 11 local government units mostly in northern Iloilo have already declared their municipalities under the state of calamity.

“Of the PHP65 million, around PHP44 million will go to agriculture for fisherfolks, high-value crops, rice and fisheries where the damage was huge,” SP’s presiding officer and Senior Board Member Rolando Distura, said in a media interview.

He added that the over 1,100 damaged houses will also receive PHP10,000 assistance each.

Provincial Administrator Lawyer Dennis Ventilacion, in a media interview, said the provision of assistance will be carried out once the election ban is lifted.

He said that they still have to process the documents and procure the assistance to be provided to target recipients.

“With this approval we can access for more funds. We plan to ask for national funding, especially for our damaged infrastructure,” he said. (PNA)