THE head of Barangay 76-A raises concern over food assistance for residents affected by the two fire incidents that occurred on Sunday, April 7, 2024.
Robert Olanolan, barangay captain of 76-A, said in a media interview on Monday morning, April 8, 2024, at the Bucana gym in Davao City, that the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) did not immediately distribute the food packs to the 478 individuals affected by the fire.
“Ngano man nga naay mga goods nga niabot sa barangay, ngano man inyong gitaguan, ngano wala man ninyo gihatag, nga naa man unta koy gipang-assign nga community cooker dira para ma-accomodate usa nato ang kaning problema (Why is there food that arrived in the barangay, why did you hide it, why did they not distribute it? I have already assigned a community cook there to help resolve this particular problem),” he said.
Olanolan shared that personnel from CSWDO told him that the barangay should shoulder the food for the affected residents through its calamity fund. However, Olanolan explained that it was not easy to request the funds, saying that the incident occurred on a Sunday. He added that they only can work on it on Monday as the succeeding days would be a holiday.
“Ang calamity fund sa barangay dili na easy lang na nga i-release, kabalo ka sa proseso sa gobyerno due process na siya. Resolutionan pa namo na pero ikaduha holiday kagahapon unya karun the first day of the week pero ugma holiday na sad (The calamity fund of the barangay is not released easily, we know that in the government it needs to undergo due process. We need to make a resolution, but it was a Sunday at the time of the incident, and today is the first day of the week, but tomorrow it will be another holiday),” he said.
The barangay captain stressed the importance of cooperation in helping the victims of the fire. He expressed that the barangay council of 76-A has conducted its session and will provide food for the 478 individuals. First District Representative Paolo "Pulong" Z. Duterte then pledged to cater to the victims' lunch until Friday, April 12.
The fire victims are temporarily sheltered at the Bucana gymnasium for the Christians and the Madrasah Comprehensive Development and Promotion Program for the Islam community.
Meanwhile, in a media interview, Lino Salamanca, a social worker at CSWDO, said that they are still gathering data and are listing the number of people who were affected by the fire. He clarified that they will use the data that they have gathered before they make requests for food packs for the victims.
The barangay also welcomes people who wish to help the victims of the two fire incidents.
Two fire incidents occurred separately in Barangay 76-A on April 7; one was in Purok 26, Muslim Village, Times Beach, in which about 20 houses were engulfed by the fire and at Purok 4, Bucana Seawall, where around eight houses were affected. RGP