Councilors look at P4m disaster fund to aid hungry Oro farmers

 By NITZ ARANCON
Correspondent

COUNCILORS are looking at P4 million from the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) that could be used by city hall to buy sacks of rice for distribution to over a thousand farmers in the hinterland barangays of this city whose families are going hungry because of the dry spell.

On Friday, the city council’s members of the committees on social services and agriculture met to discuss how the local government could help the farmers and their families who complained about the lack if not, the absence of rain, and the rising temperatures that have dried up their farmlands.

Councilor Annie Daba, chair of the city council’s agriculture committee, said councilors would push for the approval of an appropriations ordinance during the regular session of the city council today.

Daba said the proposed measure, if approved, would allow Mayor Oscar Moreno to buy rice to help farmers in feeding their hungry families.

She said the city council could not act on Moreno’s request for a declaration of a state of calamity unless  the affected a detailed report on the extent of the damages is submitted to the city’s legislature.

Daba said only 13 of 25 barangays have submitted their reports to the City Social Welfare and Development (CSWD).

“Dili man mahimo nga unahon nato pag-declare nga calamity ang 13 ka barangay, kay 25 man ka barangay ang  tu-a sa kabukiran. Pero ang nag-submit sa reports 13 ra man, ma-o na nga  mintras nga wala pa kita maka-declare sa state of calamity, bugas lang una ang atong paliton aron ihatag sa mga farmers nga wala nay pagka-on karon,” Daba said.

Meanwhile, Tignapolo-an barangay chairman Jay Pascual called on the city council to declare a state of calamity the soonest possible so that city hall could use its five-percent calamity fund to aid people in the hinterland villages.

“Namala na ang among mga water spring sa kabukiran tungod sa init, ug dili igo kanang bugas nga ihatag sa mga farmers kay unsa-on man nila kana pag-lung-ag kon walay tubig?” Pascual asked rhetorically. (nitz arancon)