The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has committed financial support for the Purok Resilience Program and classroom needs of Iloilo province.

Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. on Thursday said that he had a brief meeting with Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla, who visited the wake of Dueñas, Iloilo Vice Mayor Aimee Paz Lamasan on Wednesday.

“He will help us in our Purok Resilience Program and our classrooms. It was a brief meeting, but I think it was a serious commitment from the secretary, that Iloilo is important to him,” he said in a press conference.

Defensor said he already met with the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office to prepare the program that they will present to the secretary.

“That is a good socialized housing program, and they have funds available. The DILG secretary is very interested in that. So, we get funding commitment, and we are very happy,” he said.

Defensor said the province can afford to allocate PHP40 million in one year, but it can only cater to one project.

He said the province is looking for partners, as he said it would be better if there were three.

The Purok Resilience program seeks to relocate families in danger zones by building socialized housing in safer areas within their barangay.

Currently, it has an ongoing 30-unit housing project with a land development project in Barangay Nanga in the municipality of Batad.

He said he inspected the project last week, and it already has an access road and street lights.

“That is an agrarian reform community. That is the only agrarian reform community with a socialized housing project, rice processing center. The province has provided a storage house worth PHP7 million,” he added.

Defensor said they also like to relocate families living in landslide-prone areas.

He also eyed to establish a similar project in the town of Pototan. (PNA)