By Dolly Yasa
BACOLOD City – President Rodrigo Duterte said Monday night that he will give uniform financial assistance of P2-billion each to all provinces affected by super typhoon “Odette.”
The President made the announcement in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental where he held a meeting after personally inspecting and visiting typhoon-stricken areas in southern Negros.
He went to the area four days after typhoon “Odette” wreaked havoc and left casualties in this part of the province, a report from the Philippine Information Agency said.
The President led the ceremonial distribution of family food packs, repair kits, and hygiene kits, among others, after a briefing on the post-typhoon impacts in southern Negros.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development, according to Secretary Rolando Bautista, has already extended 10,300 family food packs to the province worth P5.7 million as of December 20.
The PIA report also said that one of the beneficiaries who received a family food pack from the President was Ma. Ramona Desusa, 44, a mother of five children who shared her harrowing experience evening of Dec. 16 at the height of typhoon Odette.
Desusa, who is from Barangay Talubangi in Kabankalan, said the muddy flood water rose quickly and the next thing they knew, it was already beyond an average person’s height.
“Maayu lang kay naka evacuate akon kabataan sang temprano pa. Pero indi gid ni nakon malipatan (Good thing that my children evacuated earlier. But I will never forget this),” Desusa shared amid tears.
Desusa’s house was totally damaged by two fallen trees aside from having been submerged in muddy flood water.
Still, Desusa is thankful for the attention that the administration is pouring onto typhoon victims like her.
“Sa bilog ko nga kabuhi, subong lang ko ka eksperyensya sang sini klase nga bagyo kag sa bilog ko nga kabuhi, subong lang man ko ka experyensya nga ang Presidente mismo ang madaho sa akon sang bulig (All my life, this is the first time that I experienced this kind of typhoon but, this is also the first time that I experienced receiving help from the President himself),” Desusa said. (With a report from PIA- NegOcc.)
