Speaking in behalf of DSWD Secretary Corazon “Dinky” Soliman, DSWD Regional Director Remia Tapispisan expressed appreciation to the City Government of Tacloban for having completed 66 of the 200 core shelter units being funded by the DSWD. Tapispisan was the guest of honor during the blessing and inauguration of the Core Shelter Assistance Project (CSAP) held this week in Palanog, Tacloban City.

Learning that the shelter units were finished within the six – month required period, she said, “time is a record for me ! “ She, then, lauded Liliosa Baltazar of the City Social Welfare and Development Office which leads the implementation of the project.

Tapispisan emphasized also in her speech the importance of “sweat equity” of the beneficiaries, which means labor counterpart in terms of constructing the units. The CSAP uses the “bayanihan” way of building the structures, with the DSWD providing a daily cash incentive to the beneficiaries for a period of ten days during the construction phase.

Tacloban City Administrator Tecson John Lim, representing Mayor Alfred Romualdez, told recipients that since they have been part of building the homes, he wished that they are now empowered. Vice-Mayor Jerry “Sambo” YaoKaSin, who also witnessed the formal turn – over rites of the units to the beneficiaries, challenged the community folks to dream again.

For Gloria de los Santos, president of the Neighborhood Association for Shelter Assistance (NASA) in the new shelter community, she revealed that her fellow members will now have peace of mind, having transferred to a safer location and in a structurally strong shelter unit.

The CSAP concept is to provide homeless disaster victims or at – risk families environmental – friendly and typhoon – resistant core shelter units, that can withstand a wind velocity of up to 220 kilometers per hour, and four earthquakes or similar hazards. The local government unit has to put up a lot as counterpart, that is certified by the Mines and Geosciences Bureau as free of any danger or vulnerabilities to varied types of disasters.

The lot is a 3, 438 square – meter lot, and said shelter project has 32 duplex units and two single – detached ones. Said City Social Welfare and Development Officer, Liliosa Baltazar, the city government will shoulder as well the thirty percent requirement of the unit or the extension for the kitchen.

Baltazar reported that the remaining 134 shelter units will be put up in Barangay Cabalawan, also in Tacloban City. She bared that the DSWD Field Office poured in Php 14 million for all of the 200 units and Php 370,000.00 for the cash-for-work scheme.