MANILA — The City Council of the local government of Quezon City has declared a 'state of calamity' amidst the floods brought about by the southwest monsoon or habagat.
Mayor Joy Belmonte, however, clarified that the city being under a state of calamity does not necessarily mean that the city's state is extremely worsening.
"Ang state of calamity ay hindi dahil kaawa-awa na ang ating lungsod. We declared a state of calamity so the city can access the calamity funds or the quick response fund. This will allow us to be able to recover, rehabilitate, and respond more quickly to the needs of our people," Belmonte said in an interview with DZMM TeleRadyo's Isyu Spotted.
Belmonte cited the state of G. Araneta Avenue wherein after the flood subsided, large amounts of garbage remained in the area, causing it to remain impassable.
"Nung bumaba 'yung baha sa G. Araneta—and I'm sure babaha ulit 'yan kasi lumalakas na naman ang ulan—napakadaming basura. So hindi pa rin passable 'yung road. And we have to hire more trucks in order to clear our city and make it functional again. So isa 'yan sa paggagastusan ng ating quick response fund," she said.
"We have 36,000 evacuees ngayon sa ating evacuation centers—not to mention 'yung mga hindi nag-evacuate pero apektado—so kailangan natin mabigyan sila ng sapat na gamot at iba pang pangangailangan nila," she added.
Belmonte also said the funds would also help in repairing the damage caused by the storm to some public facilities which needed to be immediately repaired.
In a separate interview with ABS-CBN News, Belmonte added that the funds would also "allow our barangays, many of whom have over 1000 evacuees and thousands more affected residents to tend to their constituents better."
Most floods in the city have subsided and the local government is focused on tending on the needs of 27,000 evacuees in 101 evacuation centers.
In Tagumpay Extension in Barangay Bagong Silangan, several houses near the San Mateo River remain flooded.
"'Yung mga gamit wala na talaga. Itatapon na po. Bankrupt na naman. Nagloloan kami para mabuhay kami, 'yun lang hanapbuhay namin," said Analyn Ang, a resident.
"Lagi pong hirap kapag may bago at may kalamidad lalo kapag bumabaha," she added.