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The Independent Commission for Infrastructure (ICI) has admitted that organizing the fact-finding body at a breakneck speed is a formidable task.

The executive order establishing the ICI has given its executive director 30 days from its effectivity date to determine the committee’s organizational structure, staffing pattern and corresponding qualification standards.

President Marcos signed the order on Sept. 11, leaving the ICI with less than a week to meet its requirements.

Brian Keith Hosaka, ICI executive director, appointed by the President on Sept. 24, confirmed to The STAR that the fact-finding body met with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Thursday to hash out operational details.

Hosaka said the organizational structure and staffing pattern will be submitted early next week.

‘I plan to show it to the members of the commission also before submitting,’ he said in a message.

Staffing is an important component for the nearly one-month-old commission, given the huge mandate – and public expectations – bestowed on the ICI. All eyes are on the three members and the special adviser to get to the root of the multibillion-peso corruption hounding infrastructure projects.

‘The commission is busy organizing itself,’ Hosaka told reporters on Thursday, adding, ‘Things are happening too fast.’

He underscored the need to get its recruitment right because, ‘in any organization, what really is important are the people running it.’

‘We need the proper expertise because what we’re dealing with is not a simple matter,’ Hosaka said in Filipino. ‘We have to get lawyers, engineers and accountants because they assess the evidence received by the commission.’

In the end, he assured the public that while setting up operations is challenging, ‘we will manage.’

Armed with a tourism degree from UP Diliman in 1990, Marie Antonette de Ocampo wasted no time in pursuing her first career opportunity.

De Ocampo, more commonly known as Anette, applied as a ground flight attendant for an airline company, hoping to get a job aligned with her degree in tourism. However, the economic conditions in the 1990s had different plans for her. The airline company was affected by the financial crisis, which put any hiring processes on hold.

Her path eventually led her to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), where she began doing administrative work for an assistant branch manager at Manila Pavilion. She quickly rose through the ranks, later becoming executive assistant to the senior branch manager when a position opened due to internal transfers.

It was 1991 – a year that, more than three decades later, remains a distant memory for this top executive of Maynilad Water Services Inc., one of the country’s largest water utility firms.

‘I do not publicly share it, because my stint was short-lived at PAGCOR,’ De Ocampo tells The STAR. ‘But that is where everything started for me.’

Indeed, her tenure at PAGCOR was quite a short stint. De Ocampo knew back then that the political nature and structure of the state-run gaming firm might hinder her career growth. Plus, it was clear to her that she dislikes shifting duties, most especially an 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. work schedule.

The long drives from her residence in Pasig to Manila Pavilion – a 13-kilometer ride – made it untenable for her. She scoured the job market before encountering an opening at the soon-to-be constructed Edsa Shangri-La, Manila.

The job? Guest relations. The concern? It was on a shift duty. De Ocampo immediately turned down the offer and stayed a little bit longer at PAGCOR. Until one day, she said: enough was enough.

‘I went back to (Edsa) Shangri-La and to the human relations director and asked him: ‘Do you remember me?’ ‘ De Ocampo shared.

‘No, I do not,’ the human relations director told her.

‘Well, I applied a few weeks ago and you offered me a position at the restaurant,’ De Ocampo responded.

‘We have an opening now for the front desk,’ the director answered. De Ocampo took the job.

She took it as quickly as she could without realizing that it was an eight-to-five job. She eventually left the job. However, a few weeks later, she received a phone call from the hotel, informing her that a vacancy had opened up in the reservations unit. Learning that it was not a job on a regular shift, De Ocampo returned to Edsa Shangri-La, from which she rose through the ranks.

She progressed from supervisor to manager, events director, front office manager, and ultimately director of sales during her 11-year tenure at the posh hotel. She left the company as a full-time employee in 2003. However, for the next eight years, until 2011, she worked on projects for the hotel, but on a larger scale, involving the related properties.

And then she got a call from Patrick ‘Pato’ Gregorio, a known personality in the hotel industry. The call was a job offer. Gregorio wanted De Ocampo to join him at Maynilad.

‘Is it an eight-to-five job?’ De Ocampo asked Gregorio.

‘Yes,’ Gregorio responded.

‘I do not like an eight-to-five work,’ she said.

‘Why don’t you give it a try? It is just near your house.’ That was music to De Ocampo’s ears. And she gave it a try.

De Ocampo started her career at the water utility firm as the head of key accounts management, overseeing the firm’s Top 200 clients, before spearheading a new department known then as Business Solutions and Sales (BSS).

At BSS, she began promoting not only Maynilad’s primary operations but also other services, such as pipe repair and leak detection.

In 2017, Maynilad established a government relations department, and De Ocampo was tasked with overseeing it.

In 2021, she assumed the position of vice president for corporate affairs and communications, which was left vacant by Gregorio in 2018. Today, she oversees Maynilad’s corporate communication affairs, government and community partnerships and corporate marketing.

‘I do not work for ambitions but for passion. If you have a passion for what you do, it will truly shine through in your work. It will come naturally,’ De Ocampo says.

De Ocampo admits that the training and experience she got at Edsa Shangri-La helped her transition to the corporate world of Maynilad. She may no longer handle hotel clients, but government and private stakeholders of the water utility firm are no different at all. After all, they are humans at the end of the day, just holding titles and ranks.

‘I do not treat people relations as a business or a transactional deal. I treat them as friends. Because if I do not treat them as humans, then it will show in my work and interactions with them,’ she says.

In fact, De Ocampo has always been fond of interacting with people.

If De Ocampo met her past ‘Iska’ self, she would tell her one thing: go out and mingle.

‘I realized that there are UP graduates, now in various positions in government or private practice, who were my batchmates, but I did not get to know a lot of them on a personal level while in school,’ she shares.

If there is one thing that makes Anette, Anette, then it is the fact that ‘she cannot lie,’ according to her husband. De Ocampo says that it is perhaps because of her upbringing. She grew up in a Catholic family residing very near the church. She attended Catholic schools for her education. She observed Catholic traditions and attended church regularly with her mother.

Today, De Ocampo is one of the four women in Maynilad’s top management – and is one of the few who is not related to the firm’s water operations. For her, having a seat at the table in an industry traditionally dominated by men is both a privilege and a source of pride.

‘This does not mean that we get less to say in the boardroom,’ she says. ‘In fact, my presence gives not only a different, but a fresh perspective during discussions,’ she adds.

And her presence convinced other top management officials to see the corporate affairs and communication division in a different light. It is a valuable unit in Maynilad’s line of business.

‘You cannot be in my position if you are not humble enough. Humility is key. At the same time, you need to have some confidence – that fine balance between showing authority and being humble,’ De Ocampo explains.

De Ocampo describes herself as an incurable optimist. ‘I always see things in a positive light.’

‘If there is any task given to me, I always think that I can do it,’ she explains.

Maynilad’s upcoming initial public offering also opens a new chapter and milestone not only for the utility firm but also for De Ocampo’s storied corporate career.

De Ocampo currently oversees efforts to ensure that Maynilad’s story is communicated clearly and consistently to stakeholders, building confidence in the firm while highlighting its achievements and future growth.

‘It’s a story of who we are as a company, our purpose and the value we bring to the market,’ she said.

De Ocampo also hopes for the day when the Maynilad Foundation will be established, allowing the water utility firm to expand and scale up its philanthropic activities.

As De Ocampo looks back on the story of her career so far, she may stumble upon two things – two phone calls, to be exact – one with the human relations director of Edsa Shangri-La and that call from Mr. Gregorio.

‘Somebody wrote in our yearbook that I am going to make it in life and in my career – that I will become successful,’ she recalls.

In our Gospel today (Luke 17:5-10), Jesus tells us that even faith the size of a mustard seed can command a mulberry tree to be uprooted and replanted in the sea. What is meant here certainly goes beyond the literal. No person of faith should go around ordering trees to dig themselves up and plunge into the deep.

Similarly, no interpretation of this passage should ignore the verse before it where Jesus challenges us, ‘If [your brother] wrongs you seven times in one day and returns to you seven times saying, ‘I am sorry,’ you should forgive him.’

A mulberry tree is notorious for having a dense network of roots that can spread up to fifty feet from the tree. Imagine the effort needed to trace and untangle this root system that invades and damages building foundations. So too can the hurt from being wronged be described. It invades the deepest core of your being and destroys the foundations of relationships. To forgive is to root out all the ill feelings and risk again. Perhaps this is why the image of uprooting the mulberry tree is paired with planting it in the sea. For the ancient Israelites, the sea symbolized chaos. To forgive is to face turmoil instead of just hiding or running away. Only with faith can we do this.

But what is faith?

The passage about faith uprooting the mulberry tree must also be read with the passage after it. Brace yourself:

‘Who among you would say to your servant who has just come in from plowing or tending sheep in the field, ‘Come here immediately and take your place at table’? Would he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for me to eat. Put on your apron and wait on me while I eat and drink. You may eat and drink when I am finished’? Is he grateful to that servant because he did what was commanded? So should it be with you. When you have done all you have been commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.”

I am not sure how you feel about those lines. Would you prefer what Jesus said five chapters before: ‘Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen, I say to you, he will gird himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them’ (Luke 12:37)?

The former passage paints an aloof God, an employer instead of a Father. The latter shows us a more intimate Lord. And isn’t this what Jesus exemplified at the Last Supper? ‘He took a towel and tied it around his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and dry them with the towel around his waist’ (John 13:4-5).

Is your God near or far?

While I am sure we would all prefer the God who is near, I think the answer closer to our experience is: God is both near and far.

We feel God close when blessings surround us, when peace, as the calming hymn sings, is ‘before us, behind us, and under our feet.’ But God may seem distant when those who are just suffer while those who oppress them prosper, when we cannot understand his mysterious ways. During those times, we need faith to hold on until God feels close again.

But what is faith?

Here is one way to understand faith: It is a personal relationship with God that allows us to trust that even when God seems far, he is still somehow near. Even when it seems that God is asking something impossible from us-like forgiving seven times in one day-our relationship with him will also give us the confidence to question and to complain, but ultimately, the strength to do his will. That is faith. It is wrestling with roots that may seem to have trapped us and then diving deeper into our relationship with him.

Nice words. Now here is something to make them real: I recently had a conversation with someone who enlisted in a Bible class I facilitate. I asked him why he was so interested in Scripture. He told me it was because, not too long ago, he had been diagnosed with cancer. His answer puzzled me until I prayed with this Sunday’s Gospel. When the diagnosis dropped like a judge’s gavel, God must have seemed infinitely far. Yet this man sought God even more.

Your prayer assignment for this week:

Imagine yourself in the shoes of that man diagnosed with cancer. What would you do? It may be cheesy, but the voice in my mind cannot help but sing these modified lyrics: ‘Near, far, wherever you are, I believe that our hearts do go on. Once more, you open the door, and you’re here in my heart. And my faith in you will go on.’

Conglomerate San Miguel Corp. (SMC) has expanded its river cleanup program to Alabang River in Muntinlupa.

SMC said the initiative includes clearing obstructions and widening narrow sections of the waterway to ease flooding that has long affected nearby communities and critical roads.

More than 26,000 tons of silt and waste from a 450-meter stretch of the river, starting at its mouth in Laguna de Bay and going upstream near Cupang Bridge, have been cleared in the two months since work started.

‘Our goal is to provide long-term solutions that would ease flooding for the city’s communities and critical roadways,’ SMC chairman and CEO Ramon Ang said.

‘We owe a great deal of gratitude to Mayor Ruffy Biazon for bringing together the concerned agencies to work with us on a comprehensive approach to solve the problem,’ he said.

The operations are part of remedial measures after severe flooding last July 8 left motorists stranded for hours along South Luzon Expressway.

SMC said that a subsequent investigation found that Alabang River was heavily silted and constricted that rainwater could not flow freely along the waterway.

Several sections of the river had also been narrowed by informal structures and new construction, the company said.

SMC shared the findings with Muntinlupa City Mayor Ruffy Biazon, who then welcomed SMC’s deployment of dredging equipment to begin clearing the river a week after a meeting last July 25.

The company has since been coordinating with the Muntinlupa City Engineering Office, the Department of Public Works and Highways and a nearby private subdivision on efforts to restore the river to its natural depth and width.

SMC said that newly installed sheet piles by a private contractor had to be removed as they were obstructing the flow of water along the channel.

It said that efforts would have to include relocating informal settler families along the riverbanks through a well-coordinated relocation effort for affected families.

Apart from Alabang River, SMC has ongoing cleanup operations that have so far removed 268,979 tons of debris from 5.9 kilometers of Parañaque Rivers around NAIA, 256,920 tons from 2.8 kilometers of Navotas Rivers, 479,278 tons from 6.2 kilometers of San Pedro Rivers in Laguna and 19,842 tons from Las Piñas River.

Tuyo (dried fish) used to be considered as a poor man’s food. You eat it only when there is nothing more to eat at home – and always hidden from sight.

The reputation of tuyo, however, has changed completely, as it now goes into such gourmet dishes as Italian pasta and Chinese fried rice.

This pasta recipe of Chef Jackie Ang Po, which she developed for Arla and Global Pacific, makes full use of the tuyo’s flavor profile – salty, intense, flavorful – to give a Filipino twist to a pasta dish. It takes the place of anchovy and pairs up well with another uniquely Filipino ingredient, kamias, for a tangy, sour note on the palate.

‘The saltiness of the tuyo and the sourness of the kamias is great for this pasta recipe,’ Chef Jackie said.

Tuyo and Kamias In Tomato Cream Pasta

Ingredients:

1 pack Armando Linguine

Oil and drippings from 1 bottle tuyo

5 cloves garlic, sliced

1 pc. onion

1 bottle (120 grams) tuyo

2 cans Sunny Farms tomatoes

1 cup shrimp stock

4 pcs. fresh kamias, sliced

1 cup all-purpose cream

1 tbsp. sugar

Salt and pepper, to taste

Arla Apetina Cheese

Procedure:

1. Cook the pasta. For every 500 grams of Armando linguine, use 5 liters of water, and make sure the water is at rolling boil stage. Set aside.

2. Pour the oil and drippings from your bottled tuyo into a pan, and heat. Sauté garlic, onion, tuyo, and tomatoes. Pour in shrimp stock and add kamias. Once mixture simmers, add all-purpose cream. Season with sugar, salt and pepper. Simmer until sauce is reduced to sauce consistency.

3. To serve, arrange a mound of cooked pasta on plate. Top with sauce. Add more tuyo and sliced kamias for topping, if desired. Sprinkle with Arla Apetina Cheese.

4. Enjoy!

For those of us working in the foreign service, what is happening in our country today is so frustrating, to say the least. Here we are vigorously promoting the Philippines like hell, competing with our Asian neighbors for a ‘slice of the pie’ – only to be confronted with this horrific corruption scandal the country is facing.

Countries are considering suspending funding for a bridge project linked to the scandal, citing concerns over governance and transparency. Other bilateral donors and aid agencies are quietly reviewing their exposure. What begins with a single delayed project can quickly cascade: procurement pipelines slow down and lenders hesitate to approve new funding tranches.

The Philippines finds itself at a precarious crossroads, with a broadening corruption scandal surrounding flood control and infrastructure projects dominating headlines – triggering public outrage and drawing scrutiny from donors and investors alike. What initially appeared as a domestic political crisis has evolved into a reputational challenge with direct implications on foreign direct investments, international aid and the country’s broader economic trajectory.

For the business and finance community, this episode is not merely a governance story: it cuts right to the heart of how risks are priced, how projects are financed and whether the Philippines can sustain its narrative as one of Southeast Asia’s rising investment destinations.

International capital flows need to be protected. For multilateral development banks, bilateral donors and private financiers alike, the primary question is not simply ‘What is the return?’ but ‘Can I trust the money to be used as intended?’

Revelations of kickbacks, substandard works and inflated contracts in government-funded flood control projects directly undermine that trust. Once credibility is shaken, the cost is not only reputational. Donors may suspend disbursements, impose stricter conditionalities or redirect funding to countries with more predictable governance frameworks. Private investors may demand higher risk premiums or shift capital to competing destinations like Vietnam or Indonesia.

This reputational contagion extends beyond aid – several foreign firms operating in the Philippines already felt the effects of ongoing graft probes. Heightened uncertainty is forcing multinationals to reassess whether the Philippine market justifies added risks. For those weighing expansion, the scandal could tip the balance toward postponement or cancellation.

Investors in emerging markets are quick to react to risks. Political and governance scandals translate into higher spreads on sovereign debt, greater volatility in equity markets and a weaker peso as confidence ebbs. This is no small matter for the Philippines, which depends on both remittance inflows and foreign capital to balance its current account.

If international financial institutions perceive systemic weaknesses in procurement and anti-corruption enforcement, ratings agencies may flag governance as a structural risk, raising borrowing costs for both government and private issuers, squeezing fiscal space and corporate expansion plans alike.

In a region where capital moves quickly, perception matters as much as fundamentals. Investors ask not only whether the Philippines is growing – but whether it is being governed properly.

Another under-appreciated consequence is the alignment of this scandal with environmental, social and governance (ESG) frameworks. Much of the corruption has been uncovered in flood control and water management projects – sectors central to climate resilience.

Donors are increasingly deploying capital with ESG criteria. If the Philippines becomes perceived as a governance liability precisely in those sectors, it risks exclusion from the fastest-growing streams of concessional and green financing. For private investors, association with projects tainted by corruption also carries reputational risk that many boards will not tolerate.

At home, the scandal threatens to stall infrastructure rollout – a backbone of the government’s growth strategy. Delayed projects mean lost jobs, fewer contracts for suppliers and weaker overall economic gains.

Moreover, corruption diverts scarce fiscal resources. Every peso siphoned away through kickbacks is a peso deprived for education, health or legitimate infrastructure, eventually eroding productivity, widening inequality and suppressing domestic demand – all of which matter to investors assessing market fundamentals.

What needs to happen next is key because the damage is real, yet not irreparable. The Philippines can still turn this crisis into an opportunity for reform through 1) swift, credible and independent investigations. Business and financial partners are watching not only what the government says, but what it does. An independent anti-corruption body with prosecutorial power would reassure donors that accountability is not cosmetic; 2) full transparency. Procurement records, contract details and audit reports should be made public. Sunlight is the best disinfectant – and also the most persuasive argument to skeptical investors that the government has nothing to hide and 3) visible accountability. Symbolic prosecutions will not suffice. High-level convictions, restitution of stolen funds and protection of whistleblowers would send the clearest message that the Philippines is serious about changing course.

For President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., this a test of leadership, with the scandal presenting both peril and possibility. Peril, because mishandling could bolster perceptions that his administration is unwilling or unable to confront corruption. Possibility, because success in restoring trust could provide the lasting legacy his presidency seeks.

The unfolding corruption scandal has already eroded confidence and frozen some capital flows. Left unchecked, it could raise risk premiums, drive away investors and curtail access to international aid just when the Philippines needs it most.

Yet the same crisis can be a catalyst. If the government acts decisively, engages transparently and builds enduring institutions, the Philippines can emerge stronger – with renewed investor trust and reinforced governance.

For the business and finance community, the message must be clear that there is decisiveness in making necessary reforms – because this moment of crisis can actually open a window of opportunity.

Clearly, we must seize the moment before the moment seizes us.

The Small Basketeers Philippines-Passerelle Twin Tournaments organized by the BEST Center blasted off last week at the Claret School of Quezon City with 12 teams competing.

Milo Sports Head Carlo Sampan and Fr. Victor Sadaya, Claret School Director, helped usher in the long-running competition for grade school basketball hopefuls that has been recognized in the Philippine Sportswriters Association Hall of Fame.

Vying for the SBP crown are Claret School of QC, Colegio San Agustin, La Salle College Antipolo, La Salle Greenhills, Lourdes School Queon City and Lourdes School Mandaluyong

Competing in the Passerelle Division are Claret School of QC, Don Bosco Technical Institute, Makati

La Salle Greenhills, Lourdes School of Mandaluyong, Paref Southridge School and University of Santo Tomas.

The twin tournaments are sponsored by Milo.

Cagers 9 to 11 years old are playing in the SBP while their 12 to 15-year old counterparts play in the Passerelle.

There is no International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant of arrest for Sen. Ronald ‘Bato’ dela Rosa.

‘Until we see the arrest warrant, then there is none,’ Justice Secretary Jesus Crispin Remulla told reporters when asked if the Department of Justice was preparing for such a move.

As for contingency plans, he said authorities are not discussing it yet.

‘We’ll cross the bridge when we get there,’ Remulla said.

Former senator Antonio Trillanes IV, who was recently in The Hague, said ICC arrest warrants could be issued in early 2026 against Dela Rosa and Sen. Bong Go.

‘As for the warrant (from the ICC), we are only expecting two. One for Bato, another for Bong Go. Maybe the earliest these warrants would be out is early next year,’ he said in an interview with ‘Storycon’ on One News.

Dela Rosa could possibly be cited as detained former president Rodrigo Duterte’s co-conspirator in the drug war killings, with ICC prosecutors, in a July pre-confirmation brief, citing Dela Rosa’s vow to ‘scale up’ the Davao model of killings, his signature on Tokhang directives and his chilling statement: ‘Killings in the name of drugs. This is really about killings in the name of drugs.’

The official number of fatalities of the Sept. 30 magnitude 6.9 earthquake in Cebu went back up to 70 yesterday as the management of the dead and missing cluster led by the Department of the Interior and Local Government continued to validate the reported deaths.

As verified so far, the Office of Civil Defense said 32 of the casualties are from Bogo City, while 14 are from Medellin, 15 from San Remegio, six from Tabogon and one each in Sogod, Tabuelan and Borbon.

The number of reported injuries is currently at 559 – with Bogo City, the earthquake’s epicenter, accounting for 180 people hurt, followed by 150 in Tabogon, 66 in Medellin, 86 in San Remigio, 20 in Tabuelan, eight in Borbon, four in Catmon, 29 in Daanbantayan, 14 in San Francisco and two in Carmen.

Latest data from the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) said a total of 128,294 families or 457,554 persons were affected by the earthquake.

Of the number, at least 407 families or 1,347 persons from affected communities were served inside four evacuation centers or temporary shelters.

The NDRRMC said a total of 18,154 damaged houses were reported in Central Visayas with 3,507 homes reported as destroyed.

Tent cities

Cebu residents displaced by the earthquake can now have temporary shelter following the tent cities put up by the national government.

Public Works Secretary Vivencio Dizon and Philippine Red Cross (PRC) chairman Richard Gordon yesterday led the establishment of tents in Barangay Cogon in Bogo City, alongside Tourism Secretary Christina Frasco and officials from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the Cebu provincial government.

Around 200 tents were put up in Bogo City.

The PRC has brought about 2,500 family tents to be put up in several areas in Cebu. Each tent can accommodate a family of five persons and has blankets and other items for the comfort of the evacuees.

Teresito Bacolcol, Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) director, said the aftershocks would last for several weeks. He also did not discount the possibility that some of the tremors would have a magnitude of 5.1.

‘Eventually the numbers will decrease. Eventually the magnitude will downgrade,’ he said at the Saturday News Forum in Quezon City yesterday.

Phivolcs has recorded at least 5,092 aftershocks in Cebu since Tuesday.

Food packs

DSWD has released 75,000 boxes of family food packs (FFPs) to local government units (LGUs) in Cebu, Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said yesterday.

He said the 75,000 released FFPs is part of the 142,000 FFPs requested by the 11 quake-hit Cebu LGUs.

The DSWD’s Field Office-7 (FO-7) has deployed its quick response teams in the municipalities of San Remigio and Medellin in Northeastern Cebu to render disaster relief operations.

The FO-7 also continues to lead the profiling of the affected families through the use of Family Access Cards in Emergencies and Disasters in Bogo City.

Meanwhile, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG)’s Gabriela Silang transported relief goods to West of Sabil Point in San Remigio, Cebu yesterday.

The PCG said that LCT Island Shipping helped in the collaborative effort of the Coast Guard District Central Visayas and Coast Guard Station Northern Cebu.

At least 23 PCG personnel, 20 personnel from LCT Island Shipping and one representative from the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) assisted in the delivery of relief goods.

The said relief goods are composed of 3,300 food packs and 2,066 evacuation supply kit from PCSO and 66 sacks of rice from the Coast Guard Civil Relations Service.

PCSO general manager Melquiades Robles said evacuation kits and relief goods were also on their way yesterday to typhoon victims in Masbate.

‘We cannot turn away from the suffering of our fellow Filipinos in Masbate and Cebu,’ Robles said in a statement.

Drop-off points

In a similar development, the Department of Tourism (DOT) has offered to use the Tourist Rest Areas built in the province of Cebu as drop-off points for donations to earthquake victims.

The agency brought up the suggestion after the municipal government of Medellin, one of the towns affected by the powerful temblor, announced it has established a 24/7 drop-off area for relief item donations at the Tourist Rest Area built in front of the municipal hall.

‘Our Tourist Rest Areas here in Cebu, including the one in the Municipality of Medellin, continues to be open and it is ready to receive and be a drop-off point for those who may wish to provide assistance to the Cebuanos affected by this tragedy,’ Frasco said.

‘Other tangible relief aid to Cebu may also be dropped-off to other Tourist Rest Area locations in Moalboal, Carcar and Carmen,’ she added.