Provincial Board (PB) Member Tomas Abapo, Jr. called on the Governor’s Office (GO) to look into the alleged failure of the previous administration to distribute some donations for victims of Typhoon “Odette”
Abapo, during the PB’s regular session on Tuesday, passed a resolution appealing to the GO to direct the General Services Office to conduct an inventory of donations received and distributed by the provincial government under former governor Art Yap.
“Dili ni maayo sa probinsya kay simbako og naa na puy lain calamities mo sunod di na ganahan mang donate ning mga donors kay wa man e-distribute,” Abapo told media after the session.
Information received by Abapo indicated that some of the donations that were not distributed included generator sets and food.
According to Abapo, the probe should be done swiftly so distribution of the goods can resume.
He said immediate action is particularly important for the donated food considering that these could be nearing their expiration dates.
“Ang ato lang na kung mapamatud-an, unya dili intention na dili e-distribute, maayo pud og mahibaw ta. Kay kung tinuod, ma koreksyonan ni unya mahatag ni sa purpose na intended sa donor,” said Abapo.
Abapo added that the probe could be covered by the newly created Office of Governance Accountability and Review (OGAR), which is mandated to investigate alleged anomalies during the previous administration.
However, he noted that it was still necessary to file the resolution in aid of legislation.
Abapo said findings of the probe could be used to craft measures that would ensure that distribution of relief goods and similar undertakings will be done with more efficiency.
“Dili man ta kabuhat og legislation kung wala tay gibasehan,” Abapo said.
In June, the former administration under Yap drew flak from the public after it was found out that piles of relief goods still remained in storage at the Bohol Cultural Center almost six months after Typhoon “Odette” pummeled Bohol.
Following the public uproar, the food packs which contained rice, canned goods, noodles, milk and coffee, among others were quickly turned over to the local government units of Ubay, Buenavista, Getafe, Danao, Batuan and Valencia. (A. Doydora)