CEBU – Survivors of typhoon Haiyan have been barred by authorities from rebuilding their destroyed houses in coastal areas in the central Philippine province of Leyte which was ravaged by calamity last year.
Youth group Anakbayan also protested the government’s no-build zone policy and demanded Manila to provide P40,000 financial assistance for each family whose houses were destroyed by Haiyan.
“Instead of helping the storm survivors rebuild their lives, the Aquino administration’s rehabilitation plan is more concerned with helping big business make money out of the wreckage of Eastern Visayas,” Vencer Crisostomo, national chairperson of Anakbayan, said in a statement sent to the regional newspaper Mindanao Examiner.
He said that many aspects of the rehabilitation plan, including the no-build zone, are actually anti-poor and favors business interests.
“For example, the no-build zone can be used as an excuse to clear large swaths of land for the planned Tacloban City Economic Zone. The eco-zone includes plans for developing Tacloban’s beaches into tourist facilities.”
“Another troubling aspect of the rehab plan is the bloated budget and while damages are pegged at P36 billion, the total rehab plan has a purse of P361 billion. Why the large funding? Revelations of overpriced bunkhouses are an indication of why and so the government can inflate the price tags of infrastructure contracts and award them to their allies,” Crisostomo said.
Crisostomo said that they will also support the daily protests of various groups and sectors in Leyte and Samar.
“The people of the Visayas cannot expect any meaningful and significant efforts from this bumbling, nincompoop president. They should learn from the experience of typhoon Bopha survivors – only through the power of protest and collective action can they rebuild their lives and receive the help which they deserve to get,” he said.
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