LGU extends help to fire victims without fanfare

CITY officials belied opposition’s accusation that the local government unit (LGU) didn’t do anything to help the fire victims of Dist. 4 whose houses were razed last Aug. 10. Actor Richard Gomez made a publicized visit to the site with media practitioners in tow afternoon the next day.

Gomez’s supporters immediately uploaded photos of his visit on social networking sites and posted criticisms against city officials for not doing the same. “Grabe gyud, gi-politicize ang maong sunog ug gihimo-himoan og istorya nga dili mao,” Councilor Lea Doris Capuyan-Villar complained at a barangay visit.

Mayor Eric C. Codilla, for his part, recounted what happened that night, saying he rushed to area immediately after hearing about it. But instead of going near the scene where it was hot, he opted to position himself across Anilao River where he could see everything and get a better perspective of the situation.

He debunked allegations that the fire spread because of the delayed response of firemen and the lack of fire trucks, saying the real reason is the difficulty of fire trucks to get in because of the absence of an access road considering the community is made up of informal settlers.

Firemen hosed the flames from the top floor of Se San School nearby which wasn’t enough. Through radio, Mayor Codilla directed the fire trucks to the river walk which was being blocked by people. He radioed the police to guide the fire trucks through the crowd. The mayor saw the wind pattern and directed the firemen where to train their hoses, thus saving the rest of the neighborhood.

At a barangay visit in Bagong Buhay last Aug. 15, Villar clarified that the LGU was the first to extend assistance to the victims even as the fire was still raging. City Social Welfare and Development Officer Marietta Legaspi said they distributed 166 packs of noodles, 49 packs of biscuits and 352 sachets of coffee that night.

The next day, her office gave 450 kilos of rice, 900 cans of sardines and beef loaf, 400 packs of noodles and 180 bottles of mineral water. On Aug. 12, they continued distributing 450 kilos of rice, 498 cans of sardines, 450 packs of noodles and 252 cans of beef loaf. Legaspi said they will continue providing food aid to the victims for the next two weeks.

Councilor Rolando Villasencio who is with the Gomez camp agrees there was a misimpression that the LGU didn’t extend assistance because of the absence of materials like tarpaulins informing where the aid came from. In contrast, the relief goods given by Gomez were wrapped in plastic bags bearing the “Serbisyong Gomez” logo.

Meanwhile, other government and private organizations also extended assistance to the victims. Among them are Rotary Club of Ormoc, Serv Well Drugstore, Simeon Enterprises, Tau Gamma Phi fraternity, 19th IB, the Restauro family as well as teachers and students of Eastern Visayas State University.

(West Leyte Weekly Express issue of Aug. 13-19, 2012)