UN starts sending high energy food

MANILA – As the United Nations started shipping tons of high energy foods for distribution to the victims of the floods in the Philippines, Malacañang assured the people that the aid would be used efficiently and distribution will be transparent.

Presidential economic spokesman Gary Olivar issued the statement as the first of the two largest high-energy food shipments from the UN World Food Program (WFP) arrived in the country for victims of tropical storm “Ondoy” and typhoon “Pepeng.”

“Obviously there will be enough safeguards set up both from our side as well as from the side of the UN, which I am sure as an international organization of long standing is not unfamiliar with dangers like that (aid misuse),” Olivar told a news briefing.

Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita earlier said the use of all foreign and local donations for relief and rehabilitation work would be transparent and fully accounted.

He said there would be a mechanism to ensure transparency in the use of such donations.
The Commission on Audit could look into the disbursements once the relief and rehabilitation work is
completed, said Ermita.

Olivar said that critics of the administration’s relief and rehabilitation operations are usually the people who have not given any donation to the typhoon victims.

“I would like to add that people who already speak against the possibility of something like that (aid misuse) happening, even before it happens, are not very different from people who shout fire in a crowded theater,” Olivar said.

“Very often, the adverse reaction that they (critics) create is worse than what they say they are trying to avert or prevent,” he said.
Olivar said the current situation calls for all Filipinos to unite to allow the nation to recover from the calamity.

* Germany has provided an additional 800,000 euros (approximately P55 million) in humanitarian aid for typhoon victims.

Ambassador Christian-Ludwig Weber-Lortsch announced yesterday that the Federal Government of Germany has decided to provide additional 800,000 euros in aid to the victims of Ondoy and Pepeng.
The latest contribution brought to 1.3 million euros (roughly P90 million) the total aid of Germany to the Philippines.

Philippine Ambassador to Ireland Ariel Abadilla expressed appreciation to the Irish government, as well as to the Filipino community, for their continued efforts to support the relief and rehabilitation of affected communities in the Philippines.

He expressed gratitude to the Irish government for allocating 350,000 euros recently for the typhoon victims.

In announcing the relief assistance, Minister of State for Overseas Development Peter Power said that he is directing the Irish government’s support to those agencies/organizations working closely with children, as they are the most severely affected by these types of disasters.

Various Filipino community groups and individuals have also been actively organizing fund-raising activities.