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First Posted on Inside Mindanao (www.insidemindanao.com) on January 25, 2009

Most displaced Sulu families have yet to return home
Antonio M. Manaytay

JOLO, SULU—Returning to where their former houses stand is not as fast as they left it early dawn of January 17 after rising tide, raging waves and strong winds hit the community near the port of this town. Only a few have managed to rebuild their houses and start a new life. Most of the affected families stayed with their relatives.

Nineteen–year–old student Ester Jihan told this writer that "a lot of the displaced families have not yet returned to the place where they formerly lived."

These families, she said, do not have the capacity to rebuild their houses because they lost almost everything when their houses were damaged.

She said, " ... others opted not to return to where they lived before for fear that the same might happen again."

Local social welfare office personnel Christopher Lee, in a text message, said the affected areas were four of the 18 towns of Sulu province, namely: Jolo, Indanan, Parang, and Maimbung.

According to the social welfare worker, there are 510 families displaced as 414 houses were destroyed by big waves in five coastal villages of Jolo town. No casualties were reported.

The local social welfare office, however, did not have the number of affected families in other towns of the province.

Octavio Dinampo, a professor of a state–run university and official of a local civil society organization in the province, said more than 1,000 people were affected in the towns of Indanan, Parang, and Maimbung. He sits in the board of Tulong Lupa Sug (Assist Sulu), a peace and development organization based in Jolo.

The professor, in a phone interview last January 18, said that people panicked and left their homes in hurry when strong winds, rising sea water level coupled with big waves hit their homes early morning of January 17.

"At least 300 families were left homeless in three towns and were forced to evacuate to high grounds as their houses were ravaged by the raging waves and strong winds," he described the situation.

The houses were easily destroyed because these were made of light materials like bamboo and woods, he explained.

"But the most important thing here is that the people don't understand that this is a worldwide phenomenon due to global warming," he stressed.

The same incident, he revealed, happened twice last year "but no one paid attention to it especially the local government" as echoed warning that a humanitarian crisis is in the offing as the affected families were left on their own with little help from the government.

Most of the affected families, the professor said, remained with their relatives while a few have managed to return to the area and started to rebuild their houses.

"As usual, the government is all words without action. What is very apparent is the lack of relief and rehabilitation efforts from the concerned government agencies like the social welfare office and the like," he lamented.

Bai Soriada Biruar, regional chief of the Department of Social Welfare and Development of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DSWD–ARMM), cannot be reached to comment.

The same sentiment was echoed by Oblate priest Emmanuel Sison, president of a Catholic school, Notre Dame of Jolo College.

In a statement of appeal sent to media, the Oblate priest called for relief assistance to the victims as he pledged to do what the Church can "to assist the victims in whatever form to alleviate the misery of the affected families."

END