OVERVIEW OF THE VILLAGE
Many volunteers around the country gathered last April 9-14, 2012 at Iligan City for the Bayani Challenge 2012. Everyone knows what happened last December 16, 2012 to Iligan and Cagayan de Oro City. Millions of properties were lost and hundreds of lives were taken away by the waters. It was indeed a boulder of rock in our history.
 |
| The Aftermath of TS Washi December 2011 Photo Credits to Malou Eudela |
After the natural disaster, the Local Government asked the helping hand of Gawad Kalinga to become partners in rebuilding the broken pieces of hope for those who were affected by the calamity. Some may have not known yet what Gawad Kalinga is. So let us try to have an open mind and let's take a moment of our time to look into this Community Development Foundation that originated and founded here in the Philippines and is now globally present across Southeast Asia and other parts of the world.
What is Gawad Kalinga?
Gawad Kalinga (GK), which means to "give care" in Filipino and is officially known as theGawad Kalinga Community Development Foundation. It is a Philippine-based poverty alleviation and nation-building movement. It is globally recognized and received a lot of awards which includes:
2010 Ernst & Young’s Social Entrepreneur of the Year Philippines
Ramon Magsaysay Award
Gawad Haydee Yorac Award
International Street Paper Award
So, now, what happened Nine Months after Sendong?
How are those living on these houses?
What is Bayani Challenge?
 |
| Official Poster for the 2012 Bayani Challenge Photo Credits to Gawad Kalinga |
"Every year since 2006, Gawad Kalinga has staged the GK Bayani Challenge, a 5-day test of courage, endurance and love for country. Teams of 15 people go on an adventure to plant hope on ground by building communities and fostering friendships that are critical to nation-building."
Source: http://gk1world.com/bayani-challenge-2012
So, now, what happened Nine Months after Sendong?
 |
| Source: Housing and Resettlement Office Report as of September 13 , 2012 |
5 months after the Bayani Challenge, 498 houses were completed and 507 are still On-Going. The first batch of turnover happened last May 2012 and the second batch was last June 2012.
At present you can see these colorful houses as well as the on-going construction around the area.
How are those living on these houses?
Ate Gina Dalid who's a resident of Bayanihan Village said that their lives are better now if you compare it to the tents where they formerly stayed for months before the relocation happened last June 2012. Her husband is a vendor at Tambo Terminal and works hard to sustain their family. They have now some furniture. It shows the improvement on these people's lives after the unexpected visit of the flooding waters last December.
While roaming around, I also encountered a Parlor Business. People may have been empowered again to have a sustainable livelihood to support their needs. Being relocated in a different place surely is very challenging yet we are to adopt to these changes and be more resilient.
 |
| Bayanihan Village sa Iligan City Photo taken last October 7, 2012 |
I admit that my few hours visit to Bayanihan Village didn't cover that much. Maybe a lot more people are still struggling to adjust in the new environment and even to the change of lifestyle. But as I look at these colorful houses, may it inspire them to dream knowing that after the storm , there will always be a very beautiful rainbow. May they never stop dreaming, believing and hoping.
NOTE: If there are any information written on this post which you think is inappropriate or lacking, please email me at ebardofrancisalain@gmail.com. This is the Author's experience of going into Bayanihan Village and the residents' shared view about their current state in the area.
This is part of the Iligan to 1 Series. What happened to Iligan 1 year after Sendong? A blogger report through his visit to different relocation sites and interview with some Iliganons. Like us on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ItsSimplyFrancis
Post a Comment