Oct 262013
 
Malacañang on Saturday said it has not yet seen a bill by Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile to create a commission to undertake the immediate rehabilitation of areas in Central Visayas devastated by the Oct. 15 magnitude-7.2 earthquake.

But deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said President Benigno Aquino would normally identify areas that need help.

“Hindi pa umabot sa atin ang proposal nila (His proposal has not reached us yet),” she said on government-run dzRB radio.

But she said Aquino would usually form a task force to deal with the effects of disasters and calamities, if the need arises.

“Normally ang ginagawa ng pangulo, ina-identify niya ang needs na matugunan sa lugar at pinapakilos niya ang department na merong pangsolusyon sa problema,” she said.

Enrile had filed Senate Bill 1872, which seeks to create a “Central Visayas Assistance, Resettlement and Development Fund” that will allocate P10 billion to help victims of the quake.

The bill calls for a Central Visayas Assistance, Resettlement and Development Commission, which is patterned after the Mount Pinatubo Commission.

Under Enrile’s bill, the proposed body will formulate policies and plans, and coordinate the project implementation among concerned agencies and monitor the progress of the projects.

The proposed commission will have a six-year term and will include the secretaries of:

Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
Department of Education (DepEd)
Department of Health
Department of Social Welfare and Development
Administrator of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council
Director of the Philippine Institute for Volcanology and Seismology
Commissioner of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts

It will also have two members from the private sector. — LBG, GMA News

 Leave a Reply

(required)

(required)