Help pour for Sendong victims

CEBU, Philippines - Cebuanos have joined hands to do everything they can for the victims of typhoon Sendong in Cagayan De Oro and Iligan cities.

In the middle of their Christmas partying last Thursday night, reporters covering the Capitol beat or the Capitol Association of Reporters in Tri-media raised P14,080 by organizing a five-minute flower dance. Governor Gwendolyn Garcia doubled the amount.

The Mactan-Cebu International Airport Authority (MCIAA) Board is also extending P1 million in monetary aid for Mindanao.

Meanwhile, Medellin Mayor Ricardo Ramirez also issued a check worth P50,000 each for Cagayan de Oro and Iligan cities while the town government employees led by Municipal Planning and Development Officer Giles Anthony Villamor initiated the “Operation Tabang.”

“As of today, we have gathered six sacks and three big boxes of used clothing. We are still accepting donation at the municipal hall. Christmas is a time for gift-giving. This time, our gifts will mean more than just Christmas to our beloved countrymen in suffering and misery. The victims of calamity also need sleeping mats, slippers, kitchen utensils, potable water and many more,” Villamor said in calling fellow residents to help.

Ramirez is scheduled to travel to Mindanao next week to deliver the financial aid and donated goods gathered from his town, along with Gov. Garcia and other mayors.

San Francisco Vice Mayor Alfredo Arquillano, for his part, was already in Cagayan de Oro yesterday with members of a nongovernment organization, conferring with the local officials on how his town could help.

Arquillano said people were crowding the evacuation centers and need all the help they could get. San Francisco has won an international award for its disaster-preparedness and systems for risk reduction.

While appreciating the voluminous donations for flood victims in Northern Mindanao, former Senator Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri has noticed the lack of one essential need, the kitchen utensils.

Zubiri who visited Cebu last Thursday shared what he personally assessed in his neighboring areas in Mindanao badly destroyed by typhoon Sendong.

He said that the survivors need clothing, slippers, mats and blankets, the personal belongings that were flushed out along with the houses during the flash floods.

Zubiri said that he also found out that there are already much sacks of rice and noodles.

“Daghan ang nag donate og noodles ug bugas pero wala sad sila panglung-ag sa bugas,” Zubiri said referring to the utensils that can be used.

When informed about Governor Garcia’s donation of P5 million each for the cities of Iligan and Cagayan de Oro, Zubiri said the amount could be used to buy kitchen utensils and other essential needs.

Zubiri lamented that it was the first time the people in Mindanao experienced such tragedy as people there are not used to typhoons.

At the Capitol, CART president and The FREEMAN reporter Gregg Rubio will personally turn over the money to the officials of the devastated cities on Tuesday. Rubio will be accompanied by CART vice president and Sun.Star reporter Oscar Pineda and other officers and members of the organization.

Rubio said their fellow reporters may criticize them for continuing with the party in spite of the tragedy, but at least, he said, they have raised an amount to help the typhoon victims.  (FREEMAN)