Kabankalan extends PHP 300,000 aid to fire victims

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY — The city government of Kabankalan in Negros Occidental extended PHP 300,000 financial assistance to the fire victims in Barangay 27 here.

Mayor Benjie Miranda turned over the check to Barangay 27 Captain Freeman Madalag, in the presence of Mayor Greg Gasataya, at the Bacolod City Government Center on Tuesday.

Miranda, in a Facebook post, said it is their way to give back to Bacolod, which helped them when they were previously severely affected by the onslaught of Typhoon Odette.

In a media interview, Madalag said the barangay council decided to use the funds to buy construction materials to help the fire victims rebuild their homes.

He thanked all who supported and extended assistance to his constituents.

Over 200 families were left homeless when a midnight fire broke out in the village on Sept. 12 due to electrical arcing, and the blaze left PHP 4.5 million worth of property damage.

The city government is coordinating with the Department of Human Settlements and Urban Development, the national housing agency, to facilitate the city’s plan to secure the 7,787-square-meter property in Barangay 27, which was devastated by fire last month.

The land, formerly under the Philippine Alien Property Administration linked to the U.S. Department of Justice in the 1950s, is now titled under the Republic of the Philippines following the agency’s dissolution.