TACLOBAN CITY, Feb. 10 (PNA) -- The Office of the
Civil Defense (OCD) has stopped accepting and processing new claims for
financial assistance from individuals injured by supertyphoon Yolanda.
OCD Regional Director Edgar Posadas said the move
is in compliance to the memorandum order by their officer-in-charge, Assistant
Secretary Kristoffer James Purisima.
The memorandum directed the OCD regional office to
focus on processing assistance for Yolanda deaths because the government is
running out of funds from foreign donors intended for the casualties of the
killer typhoon.
“The legitimacy of verification of claims for
injured victims is a great and serious challenge considering that the disaster
occurred in 2013 or more than three years ago,” Posadas told reporters.
Since 2014, the OCD regional office has endorsed to
their central office financial assistance for 8,468 injured victims and 4,476
deaths.
Those wounded when the monster typhoon struck are
entitled to PHP5,000 compensation while those who lost their loved ones can
avail PHP10,000 financial assistance.
As of Feb. 5, 2017, the OCD disbursed PHP88.71
million financial assistance for Eastern Visayas region.
The office has just completed the distribution of
financial assistance for the 26th batch of claimants for badly-hit areas.
“Only members of the immediate family or close kin
of the dead victim may claim for financial assistance. A common-law partner is
not allowed to receive the financial assistance for her or his partner,”
Posadas explained.
The official expects that families with missing
members will claim for financial aid this year.
“They will need to follow a process if they want to
receive a financial assistance, because there are requirements in applying for
presumption of death for your family members,” Posadas said.
However, providing financial assistance to them is
not immediate as it will still depend on the availability of funds, according
to the official.(PNA)
JMC/SQM/ROEL T. AMAZONA/EGR
JMC/SQM/ROEL T. AMAZONA/EGR
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