P4 million donation of Samar to Guinsaugon tragedy is missing?

CATBALOGAN, Samar  –  “Dapat dili nila gamiton ang natabo sa amu-a sa ilahang corruption ug lain pang klase sa pangawat sa kwarta ug tabang nga dapat para sa amu-a”, this was the sad statement of Guinsaugon Brgy. Chairman Genio Coquilla when he learned that Samar province allocated P4 million as assistance [view SP resolution] to the victims of the tragic mudslide that totally erased their community from the map.

The Catbalogan Cable TV Media Advocates Nucleus (CCATMAN), a Samar-based media group in search of the missing amount went to Guinsaugon, St. Bernard, Southern Leyte to investigate the whereabouts of the said donation, but were dismayed knowing that not a single centavo had reached its supposed recipients.

Brgy. Chair Coquilla deplored the exploitation of the Guinsaugon tragedy by some corrupt government officials, disclosing that the missing Samar donation is not the only assistance given to them that need to be accounted with, and revealed that there are still other donations which are yet to be declared, but by far smaller compared to the 4 million pesos allocated by Samar province.

“They are making the lives of the survivors more miserable, di ko ma-imagine nga ana-a gud di-ay mga tawo nga ing-ana, nga itabang na lang gani, kawaton pa gyud, abe nako sa mga slum area ra makita kining klase na mga tawhana”, alleged Coquilla as he presented to the media copies of various resolutions from other cities and provinces which until now have not reach their end.

As the data gathering mission of the CCATMAN continue, it stumbled on a certified list of donors of “in-kinds” or goods which were coursed through the Provincial Social Welfare and Development of Southern Leyte stipulating a total value amounting to P57,732,291.70 of goods was received by the said agency.

But upon verification made by the group, the said list do not contain the name of the province of Samar, but the group had noticed that the Office of the President in Malacañang likewise donated 4 million pesos to the mudslide victims.

The Embassy of Japan in the Philippines topped the said list as the biggest donor - that was coursed through the social welfare office - amounting to P26, 691, 893.38.

But aside from the DSWD, it was gathered that more donations were routed to the provincial government of Southern Leyte headed by its chief executive Gov. Rosette Lerias, but upon checking at the Southern Leyte capitol, the provincial treasurer Pedro Llevares, Jr. issued a certified list which upon verification do not contain the name of the province of Samar again.

According to Llevares’ list, the total cash donation that the provincial government has received amounted to P28, 532,744.65 plus $23,582.00, and no cash or goods was received coming from Samar as of August this year.

On the other hand, the municipality of St. Bernard likewise has their own list of donors for cash and “in-kind” assistance that are directly coursed through to them.

Mr. Inovencio P. Carbonilla, the town’s treasurer furnished the media group a complete list of their cash donors last August 11, 2006 that upon computation totaled to P9,076,270.76, and further certified that no donations had been received by his office from the province of Samar since the occurrence of the Guinsaugon tragedy in February 17 up to the issuance of the said certificate.

In the same instance, the over-all monitoring agency of the relief operations for the Guinsaugon tragedy led by the town’s Municipal Disaster Coordinating Council (MDCC), which is supervised by Tita I. Lorica, as the Municipal Assessor of St. Bernard LGU told in his certification that they haven’t received any form of good or “in-kind” donations from Samar since they started handling their relief operations. The certification was issued last August 11, 2006.

Meanwhile, a local NGO Athena Inc., that was established by the families and relatives of the people who perished in the Guinsaugon tragedy, whose mission is to monitor that all incoming donations are properly receipted and accounted for decried the exploitation of the death of their loved ones.

Ms. Reggie Cabugos, spokesperson of the NGO told CCATMAN in a phone interview that they will conduct their own investigation regarding the missing P4 million supposed donation of Samar province and subsequently voiced out an appeal to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Samar to cooperate with them, if not, urged the said legislative body to conduct their own investigation regarding the realization of the SP resolution that they have passed authorizing the governor of Samar to draw out money from the province’ calamity fund using the Guinsaugon tragedy as the basis.

“We wanted the truth to come out, we don’t want these people to exploit the Guinsaugon tragedy for their own benefit, ma-awa naman sila sa mga taga Guinsaugon “, said Ms. Cabugos.

Meanwhile, insiders from the Capitol’s accountant office informed that they could not find documents that will show that Governor Tan has donated the P4 million to the Guinsaugon tragedy.

The Accounting department here likewise did not confirm if the P4 million has been drawn out from the provincial coffer last March when the resolution of the authority was finally approved.

But insiders who refused to be identified informed that the money could have been paid directly to the suppliers of goods that are supposed to be delivered to St Bernard, but refused to divulge the names of the said suppliers.

It can be recalled that after the Samar Day celebration in August 11, 2006, news in capitol told that the LGU Samar has delivered 100 sacks of rice and medicines to Southern Leyte, and as of this writing, the rice delivery as of September already reached 300 sacks.

However, the Athena Inc. is still validating the report with concerned relief operations groups in Southern Leyte to determine if indeed such donations had reached their end.

“Pero sir, kahit na sabihin natin na nakarating nga ang mga gamot and the 300 sacks na iyan sa amin, for the medicines I don’t think that is still needed, iyong bigas okey, but still that figure is not enough to account the total value of the supposed donations which is P4 million, hindi sa hinahabol naming ang pera na iyan kasi bigay nga iyan dapat, ang sa amin lang is for the Samarnons to know na hindi kami kalian man nakipag-kutsaba sa mga corrupt na tao sa gobyerno para gawing P4 million ang 300 sacks of rice, your capitol people in Samar should know that as well”, Ms. Cabugos explained.

“Saka ang tagal na sir simula ng tulungan kami ng iba-ibang lugar, sing-tagal na rin nang ma-approved ng Samar ang halaga na iyon to be donated to the people of Guinasaugon, just imagine na Marso pa ho iyon, ang tanong ho namin at dapat siguro itanong ng mga Samarnon, bakit ngayon lang?”, the Athena Inc. spokesperson concluded.