Duterte to ensure recovery of residents near Taal

FILE: President Rodrigo Roa Duterte leads the ceremonial distribution of calamity assistance to the families affected by the Taal Volcano eruption at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines-Sto. Tomas Campus in Sto. Tomas City, Batangas on January 20, 2020. Malacañang on Tuesday (Jan. 28) assured Duterte will address the recovery needs of the evacuees. (Presidential photo by Ace Morandante via Presidential Communications (Government of the Philippines)/Facebook)

MANILA — President Rodrigo Duterte will address the recovery needs of displaced residents who are now allowed to return to their residences following the lowering of Taal Volcano’s alert status to Level 3, Malacañang said on Tuesday.

Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said the President would look for ways to ensure that the lives of people affected by restive Taal Volcano’s activity would return to normalcy.

“The President’s directive is always to secure their safety. So necessarily all the appropriate agencies will respond to the directive,” Panelo told a press conference.

“Ang palaging iniisip ni Presidente, ‘yung safety ng mga kababayan natin. Kung kinakailangan mag-lagay ng pondo roon, maglalagay si Presidente (The President always thinks for our fellow countrymen’s safety. If there is a need for additional fund, the President will grant it),” he added.

On Jan. 20, the President called on Congress to hasten the passage of the PHP30-billion supplemental budget for areas affected by the Taal Volcano eruption.

The supplemental budget would be used to provide assistance and livelihood to displaced residents.

More than 300,000 residents from areas near Taal Volcano have been forced to flee their homes when Taal Volcano began spewing clouds of thick ash and steam on Jan. 12.

Total lockdown of all 199 villages and 15 municipalities and cities in Batangas and Cavite has also been strictly implemented.

On Sunday, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) lowered the alert status of Taal Volcano from Alert Level 4 to 3 following the decline in volcanic earthquakes, slower ground deformation in Volcano Island and the volcano’s caldera, and weak steam and gas emissions at the main crater.

The lowered alert status of Taal Volcano paves the way for the return of affected individuals to their respective homes or workplaces outside the Taal Volcano’s seven-kilometer danger zone.

Panelo said local governments are already attending to the needs of the displaced residents.

“Tinutulungan na nga sila ng local governments eh (Local governments are helping them already). Their concerns have already been addressed,” he said.

“Kung may kulang pa, doon papasok si Presidente (If the assistance from there is not enough, the President will also lend his hand to assist them),” the Palace official added.