THE Department of Budget and Management (DBM) on Thursday said the process of identifying sites for evacuation centers “is under way.” The DBM made the clarification through Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Claire Castro after Sen. Panfilo Lacson questioned a “uniform” P180-million lump-sum allocation for evacuation centers in each of the country’s 17 regions totaling more than P3 billion.
Lacson on Tuesday also cited an apparent heavy allocation for social services. He said he and his staff’s scrutiny of the National Expenditure Program showed the allocations for the proposed evacuation centers lacked key details, including specific locations where they would be built.
The DBM said the absence of specific locations for the funding of the centers under the 2027 proposed P7.2-trillion national budget does not mean that they may be “located arbitrarily.” On Aug. 10, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) requested from the Office of the Civil Defense the list of sites to ensure the projects are properly identified and ready for implementation.
“In short, the purpose, number, cost and implementing framework are already defined. The specific sites are being finalized to the legally mandated prioritization process,” the DBM said in a statement read by Castro.
Under Republic Act 12076, or the Ligtas Pinoy Centers Act, the National Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council will coordinate with local government units in identifying and prioritizing sites, while the DPWH will implement the construction.
The sites must be selected based on technical considerations including disaster risk topography, available land and the actual needs of communities, thus the specific locations are determined through the process prescribed by law and not by the discretion of the DBM or DPWH.
For 2027, the proposed allocation covers two centers per region at P90 million per center.
