THE Commission on Audit has flagged the provincial government of Samar for constructing five multipurpose centers, intended as evacuation centers during disasters as its design exposed possible evacuees to outdoor elements.
State auditors said the multipurpose centers’ “open-air” structures worth P14 million could be ineffective in protecting the people from harsh weather conditions during disasters, which they saw as an unproductive use of the provincial government’s disaster management fund.
“These evacuation centers cum multipurpose centers are mere open-air structures with roofs and without exterior walls, which are only meant to protect or shade people from the blazing sun and rain, but not against the hazards that may be brought about by the disasters and calamities,” state auditors said in the report.
“The lack of walls of the structures would only expose the people to the very hazards meant to be prevented by the law through the use and management of LDRRMF (Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund),” they added.
Samar’s provincial government did not immediately respond to an e-mail and Facebook Messenger chat seeking comment but stated in its letter-reply to the commission that the “multipurpose centers are all in consonance with the purpose to support disaster risk management activities.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
