rfr- lllmotlc r.
Elonro NBwSPAPBn
Tuesday, August 20, 20Jg
Romualdez couple wants
Nov. 8 each year decla1qd.
as YolandaDf in E. VisaYas
, House MajoritY Leader and
teyte Rep. Martin Romualdet ald
his wife Tingog Sinirangan patty-liSt
Rep. Yedda Marie Romualdez want
to declare November I of every Year
a special non-working holiday in the
Eastern Visayas reglgn to "honor
the memory of all those who died"
when super-tyPhoon Yolanda made-
landfalt on that daYin 2013.
The Romualdezes filed Hoqse
Bill 3300, sedkinglhe declaration of
Novembgr B, eacrt' Year, as'Sblanda
Commemoration DaY," a sPecial
, non-working holiday, in TaclobanCity'
and the provinces of LeYte, Biliran,
Southern Le.yte, Northern Samar'
W€stern Samar and Eastern Samar.
"This bill is intended to be a fit-
ting hibute to the memory of all who
died inthe disaster and to salute thg
selflessness of all volunteers:and
organizations who took Part and
conmibuted in the recovery and re[a-'
bilitation efforts the commuirities
oJ
affected by the tYPhoon," theY said;
In the previous 17th Con-
gress, the House of RePreSer
tatives approved the bill'on ftom hitting us in the futurc," the
.third
and final,readihg. \! *4U , Romualdezes said.
\ p/\G,e-
principally authored bY the
now ringog Sinirangan solon
when she yas still LeYte's fust
district rePrePentative.
The Rornualdezes noted that
tor ttre last thrbe Years, the citY
of Tacloban and the'Provinces of
Leyte, Biliran, Southirn LuYt.: '
Northern Sarnar, Western and
Eastern Samar have been ob-
segvingtlre annual'commemo-
ration of Yolanda devastation
through a local executive order.
On November B, 2013, SuPer-fY-
phoon Yolanda heavi$ battered East-
ernVisaps; killingS, and
982 PeoPle,
affecting million families.
2.6
'lThe pain caused bY Yolanda
is somewhat negated'bY the Phe-
nomenal opPortunitY'tobe able t'o
build back better, given the over-
whelming supPort that comes our
r wayinmanyforms-humanitarian
aid for irrmediate disaster relief'
ftxdind assistance for rehabilita-
tion and recovery Prnjects, and
even technical assistance willing
to be shared by e:rPefts on under-
standing bgtter the'disastep that
hit us and y'reventing another one
lou