(Rep. Alan 1 B. Ecleo’s State of the District Address)
Resilience, Education, Livelihood center Ecleo’s State of the District Address
“TWO years after its landfall, we are still living under the shadow of Odette. All our efforts in the tail end of our first term, even in the middle of the National Elections, and through the beginning of our second term have been focused on one thing: paano tayo makakabangon?”
Rep. Alan 1 B. Ecleo today addressed leaders and representatives from the National Government, the Provincial Government of Dinagat Islands, Municipal and Barangay LGUs, as well as civil society and local organizations in his State of the District Address, as part of the 17th Founding Anniversary of Dinagat Islands.
Ecleo, who heads the House Committee on Disaster Resilience, reported on the several milestones reached by the District in terms of recovering and rebuilding from the Category 5 storm which ravaged it last December 2021.
“With the help of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, we were able to provide a total of 119.7 Million Pesos worth of Emergency Shelter Assistance or ESA to 12,698 families whose homes were totally destroyed by the Odette,” said Ecleo.
Ecleo personally sought the help of President Marcos in delivering additional aid to Dinagatnons whose homes were affected, particularly those whose homes were partially destroyed.
“During the first quarter of 2023, the Office was able to streamline and distribute an additional 13.6 Million Pesos worth of 1,453 more families, and 34.5 Million Pesos worth of ESA to 13,808 beneficiaries whose homes were partially destroyed,” said Ecleo.
“But we are not done. We are still hard at work in reaching 1,075 more families with the remaining 2.7 Million Pesos worth of ESA by the end of the year.”
Ecleo also continued to champion support for education, from providing scholarships in higher education and in vocational courses to rebuilding damaged school infrastructure in the Province.
“From 1.2 Billion worth in damages to our school buildings, we have already secured 267 Million in funding for their repair and improvement,” said Ecleo.
“More than this, our Office is hard at work in securing the remaining 933 Million Pesos by the end of this year.”
Ecleo also reported on the landmark bills he filed establishing Dinagat Islands’ first State College, Level 2 General Hospital, Municipal and Regional Trial Court branches, among others.
These landmark bills also include Dinagat Islands’ first airport, an initiative which the President vocally supported during his visit to Dinagat Islands last Friday.
Vision for Dinagat’s tourism, infrastructure shared by PBBM
Last Sept. 29, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos visited Dinagat Islands to lead the delivery of much-needed aid to the People of Dinagat Islands through the “Walang Gutom 2027” and “Pantawid” Program yesterday.
“Hindi lamang ang pag-recover ng mga nasirang mga building at ng mga nasira ng Odette, gagawa at meron na tayong plano para sa tourism industry ng Dinagat,” the President said in his speech. “[Kasama] ang connectivity na tinatawag, para mas madaling makabisita ang tao dito.”
The President emphasized the need for facilities and infrastructure given Dinagat Islands’ relative geographical isolation, including the construction of an airport and a Roll-On-Roll-Off (RORO) port.
“We welcome the continuing commitment of our President to the People of Dinagat Islands which he showed in the aftermath of Odette, even before the start of his administration,” said Ecleo. “This is good news to us, considering our pending requests to rebuild our damaged infrastructure and industries through the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund (NDRRMF).”
“We share the President’s vision for a more connected Dinagat Islands, that is why among our many other initiatives, we are also pushing for the Province to be a part of the planned Eastern Nautical Highway,” according to Rep. Ecleo.
Long road to recovery still ahead
Ecleo emphasized the development of a “pro-poor, disaster resilient agriculture and fisheries sector” in Dinagat Islands in order to promote food security, livelihood, and sustainability in the District.
“There is still much to be done to uplift the lives of our people from Odette and from poverty,” said Ecleo. “And a large part of this is creating livelihood and jobs for all Dinagatnons, through projects like the Multi-Species Hatchery which we enacted into establishment, and is now in the process of being constructed.”
