Inabanga Mayor Josephine Socorro Jumamoy dismissed yesterday false claims by her political enemies that there was discrimination in the distribution of relief goods to those affected by the October 15 earthquake. Political detractors of Mayor Jumamoy were having a field day discrediting her relief efforts saying that only those allied to the mayor were given the lion’s share of all the relief goods the municipality has received from different donor agencies. To debunk the baseless accusations of her political critics, Mayor Jumamoy said as of yesterday, Inabanga has already distributed 32,115 relief packs representing three tranches to all the earthquake victims in the town. Mayor Jumamoy as chairperson of the Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council was in the forefront in addressing the crisis situation. Backstopping in her effort to alleviate the suffering of her constituents are the members of the MDRRMC most notable is the MSWDO Artemia Samaco and the MDRRM Officer Rodulfo Socorin, volunteers and LGU employees. The National Government Agencies like the DSWD, Provincial Government, other LGUs, NGOs, Companies and other generous donors had also provided relief goods to the relief center.

The giving of relief goods followed a systematic procedure. The goods were packed in the relief center and placed in sacks. BDRRMC use their own vehicles and even tricycles while others use the municipality owned dump trucks and multicabs. They take the relief goods including water from the relief center corresponding to the number of families and not households. All families suffered the same fears and anxieties all families received the relief goods. Once in the barangay, it was distributed by sitios then to all the families. The distribution is in the barangay and by puroks. Some volunteers and LGU employees do the packing of the goods and the distribution to the 50 barangays.

Donors, NGOs coordinated with the command relief center and they were advised to go to a certain barangay for them to distribute the relief goods themselves. If the goods would not suffice in that certain barangay, goods from the relief center will be added to coincide with the number of families to that barangay. Some donors preferred to let the LGU handle the distribution. One donor offered the services of a filtration tank through the courtesy of lawyer Dodong Mendez, an NBI director, for 5 days for the drinking water needs of the people. A line of containers was observed even during nighttime. The municipality also received cash donations from the City of Davao, Valenzuela City from Luzon, Municipality of Asturias in Cebu and from some Provincial Officials. Aside from the Provincial Government, donors from all over the country poured in the municipality especially in barangays Anonang and Ilaya. A total of 32,115 packs of relief goods had been delivered. Presently, the MDRRMC will be distributing the 4th round to the 10,705 families in the 50 barangays. As it is, it provides relief to the hunger and anxiety of the people.