‘SELF-HELP FIRST’: Mayor says no funds for emergency kits, prepare your own ‘go bags’

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

Iloilo City Mayor Raisa Treñas-Chu urged residents to assemble their own emergency “go bags,” saying the city government lacks funds to provide disaster survival kits to every household.

Treñas-Chu said that while other local government units have distributed emergency kits to their constituents, Iloilo City cannot afford to do the same at this time.

“We are discussing it, but we will prioritize the barangay level first and assess. For now, we will have self-help,” Treñas-Chu said in an interview on Monday, Oct. 13.

The mayor said the possible distribution of go bags was discussed after she convened the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council during an emergency meeting on Oct. 10 following a series of earthquakes recently felt across the city.

A go bag is a portable emergency kit containing food, water, flashlights, medicine, first aid supplies, hygiene items, and other essentials.

These items help people stay self-sufficient during typhoons or earthquakes until help arrives or conditions improve.

“We saw that the local government units that provided go bags have lots of funds. We’re trying our best, and if we have excess funds, why not,” she said.

“Moving forward, we will see how we can provide go bags,” she added.

While the go bags cannot be provided for now, Treñas-Chu said the city is strengthening disaster preparedness through community-level initiatives.

“This is really for the emergency needs of our people, but rest assured, our trainings at the barangay level will continue,” she said.

“We will strengthen our public information system, and we have also included additional protocols for earthquake response to increase public awareness,” she added.

In June 2025, weeks before he stepped down from office, former mayor Jerry Treñas said the city was in good financial condition with PHP 4.11 billion in general funds, PHP 1.3 billion in Special Education Fund, PHP 135 million in local economic enterprise funds, PHP 574 million in trust funds, and PHP 297 million reserved for disaster response.

Under Section 22 of the Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010, each local government unit must set aside a Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund sourced from its regular annual appropriations of not less than 5% of estimated revenue from regular sources in the succeeding fiscal year.

Several LGUs have distributed emergency go bags to residents as part of preparedness efforts in response to earthquakes and flooding, including Pasig City, Quezon City, Taguig City, and Nueva Vizcaya.

In Pasig City, Mayor Vico Sotto said each go bag costs around PHP 992 and includes a solar lamp, first aid kit, whistle, rope, a collapsible water container, and other emergency supplies.