Cagayan de Oro City – To answer queries made by Sendong survivors of Barangay Consolacion, this City, on the selection of beneficiaries and distribution of the Emergency Shelter Assistance (ESA), the Department of Social Welfare and Development clarifies the assistance can only be provided through certain qualifications.

Under Administrative Order No. 17, Series of 2010, which is the Omnibus Guideline on Shelter Assistance, the Emergency Shelter Assistance is only applicable to those families who are not recipients of any other housing assistance from any other agency.

“Based on our assessment and validation through the families’ access cards in Barangay Consolacion, a number of them have already received housing assistance from other sources such as International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Red Cross, thus, are not qualified for the ESA,” Ms. Daisy Ramos, a DSWD social worker, said.

Among the qualifications to receive ESA as well include families that have limited resources that prevent them from repairing or reconstructing their permanent shelter units. The monthly income of a family of six in an urban area, which is in this case – Cagayan de Oro – should also be below P10,000.00, depending on the National Statistics Coordination Board’s statistic report on food threshold.

Moreover, the Omnibus Guideline also highlights that the families who can benefit from the assistance are those with or without land ownership property but situated in safe areas, and those who are not willing to be resettled and opt to stay in the same location but compliant with the safety requirements.

The amount of the ESA can only be determined upon the assessment of the DSWD social workers. They base their assessment on the qualifications and their living conditions.

The DSWD emphasizes that only a maximum of P5,000.00 shall be given to those families whose houses were assessed as partially damaged, and a maximum of P10,000.00 for families whose houses were assessed as totally damaged.

The DSWD however clarifies that some may receive an amount lesser than P5,000.00 or P10,000.00 depending on the need and living condition of the families.

“As much as we want to accommodate all the communities’ demand, we are still bound by the policies and guidelines of the ESA. Rest assured, there are still other DSWD social services and social protection programs available to the communities of which they can avail,” Ms. Ramos said.

 

Written by Charmaine P. Tadlas, Regional Information Officer