Lacson says rehab work for 'Yolanda' areas on track

MANILA - Presidential Assistant for Rehabilitation and Recovery Panfilo Lacson is confident that they are on track to meet rehabilitation targets nearly 5 months since super typhoon "Yolanda" struck the country. Speaking to ANC's "Headstart" on Wednesday, Lacson said ongoing projects include more than 3,000 out of 40,000 homes that have been committed, and repairs on 29 classrooms out of over 4,000. They hope to draw up and submit a master rehabilitation plan for typhoon-hit areas by June once the Office of Civil Defense submits its post-disaster needs assessment to President Benigno Aquino III. According to Lacson, they expect to see actual structures up and livelihood in place in affected areas by year-end. They also expect to see 85 to 95 percent of the rehabilitation work done by the end of Aquino's term in 2016. Lacson said they are tapping a special team to follow-up on the actual delivery of pledges. Only 2 percent of the pledges have been delivered so far. -- ANC