Amid complaints on the government’s languid response
to the disaster that the 7.2-magnitude quake brought to Visayas provinces of
Bohol and Cebu, the Palace assures “help is on the way.”
Calamity funds are being released, but as we recently
learned, calamities are a crisis turned to opportunities by unscrupulous public
officials who are given power of control over such funds. This time, while we
goad the government to, and root for, the release of funds, the public must be
vigilant that they go to intended beneficiaries.
Let us not allow the victims
of this “act of God” that is the earthquake catastrophe be victimized twice by
the greater man-made calamity of corruption.
DepEd has announced it is mobilizing its contingency
fund and releasing some Three Hundred Million Pesos (P300,000,000.00) to farm
out the works and repairs necessary to expedite reopening of school classrooms.
Let us watch those zeroes in the amount, and make sure they all go to
rebuilding the decimated and damaged classrooms and amenities.
One way to lessen the trauma for the victims,
especially the children, is to reopen the schools for them as quickly as
possible, and comfort them with the sense of normalcy it projects.
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