IDPs ask for early payout to facilitate return home

A GROUP of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) living temporarily in Cagayan de Oro City is asking the city government to release the remaining payouts sooner than scheduled as they plan to return home to Marawi City this week.

Aquisah Barazar, adviser of Ranao Rescue Team based in the city, said Maranaos here are now eager to go home since President Rodrigo Duterte announced the liberation of Marawi some two weeks ago.

"This week, magsisibalikan na yung mga IDPs sa Marawi. So if possible, ma-release na ang ipinangakong compensation sa kanila, para naman kahit papaano, meron silang kakaunting pera panggastos," Barazar said.

"Kung pwede this week, ma-release na kasi kailangan na nilang makauwi," she added.

Barazar said the next payout is scheduled on November 15.

Mohamad Gondarangin, president of the Oro Muslim Association, said he supports the group's move saying even if it is just a small amount, it is already a great help for the recovering evacuees.

"Hinihintay pa natin yung go signal ng CSWD at DSWD kung kailan ang payout kasi mas mabuti sana na before nga makauwi dala-dala na nila doon ang kaunting tulong ng gobyerno, pambili ng mga kailangan," he said.

Julius Pamisa, City Social Welfare and Development's (CSWD) Division head for Community and Social Development explained that both the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) adapted the Urban Container Household Gardening program, as a way to distribute help for the IDPs in the city.

For the DSWD program, Pamisa said that they cannot release any amount yet since it is still ongoing.

"Maybe next week, we can release na kay next week pa man mahuman ang program under the DSWD. The duration of the program is actually 10 days man gud," Pamisa said.

Pamisa said there are over 1,600 IDPs enrolled under the DSWD's Urban Container Household Gardening program.

But Pamisa clarified that for the 500 IDPs enrolled under the Department of Labor and Employment's (Dole) Urban Container Gardening, the payout was released Saturday, October 28.

"Duha man gud ka government agencies ang nag-offer sa Urban Container Gardening, ang sa DSWD wala pa karelease, pero ang sa DOLE, naka-start nata ug release last Saturday," he said.

It can be recalled that the City Government, the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole), and Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), had partnered to adapt a concept called Urban Container Household Gardening, a scheme which allows IDPs to earn money while waiting to return home.

The Dole allocated about P500 million for this program. The IDPs have undergone 30-day training for the urban container gardening, while for DSWD enrollees, the IDPs will only undergo a 10-day training.

After the training, certificates were also given to the identified outstanding urban gardening trainees.

The program, which serves as a temporary employment scheme for the evacuees, hopes to impart to IDPs the importance of vegetable planting in backyards, a strategy applied in homes so that food would always be available anytime.

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