By Brian Campued
To expedite the recovery and rehabilitation of communities affected by Super Typhoon Uwan, President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. announced that funds for the repair of damaged schools in Albay would be downloaded directly to the concerned local government units (LGUs).
In a situation briefing in Tiwi, Albay on Tuesday with Cabinet members as well as national and local officials, Marcos noted that the budget from the Department of Education (DepEd) must now directly go to the LGUs instead of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“Kasi kung minsan yung paperworks sa [DPWH] masyadong matagal, kahit nandoon yung pondo… May pondo ang DepEd para sa repair and rehabilitation ng mga classroom, ang pondo na yan ang implementing agency is DPWH… Pinapalitan natin yan ngayon para mapabilis,” he said.
Prior to the situation briefing, the President inspected the Cararayan-Naga Elementary School in Tiwi, wherein seven classrooms sustained major damage while eight classrooms had minor damage.
In a Presidential Communications Office news release, DepEd Assistant Schools Division Superintendent Bernie Despabiladero said the school’s three water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) facilities were also destroyed, while 200 learning resources and 50 desks were damaged.
To ensure learning continuity, a class-shift scheme was implemented to accommodate 157 affected learners out of the total 917 enrolled students.
During Marcos’ visit, DepEd distributed learning materials, while the Office of the President donated a Starlink unit to CNES and another unit to Tiwi Central School.
A total of 343 school bags were also distributed along with snacks for students and beneficiaries of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).
The DSWD also provided P10,263 worth of emergency cash aid as well as family, hygiene, and kitchen kits to each of the 141 families whose houses were totally damaged following the onslaught of Uwan.
According to the Albay Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council, Tiwi is among the hardest-hit municipalities in the province.
Meanwhile, DepEd said that 350 schools in Albay were affected by the typhoon, including over 40,000 students and 2,000 DepEd personnel.
The President reiterated the government’s commitment to ensuring the unhampered delivery of relief and fast-tracking recovery efforts in the disaster-hit provinces.
“Narito ang national government para tulungan ang LGU at ating mga kababayan—hangga’t kailangan niyo kami, hindi kami aalis,” Marcos said. (with report from Garry Carl Carillo / Radyo Pilipinas Albay)
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