For some reason i nearly posted this under Goon Squad:

Bohol mayor drives out Red Cross team(EARTHQUAKE RELIEF DISTRIBUTION)

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EARTHQUAKE RELIEF DISTRIBUTION
Bohol mayor drives out Red Cross team
‘Don’t set condition in doling out relief’
By Carmel Loise Matus, Tina G. Santos
Inquirer Visayas, Philippine Daily Inquirer
12:11 am | Wednesday, October 23rd, 2013


Read more: Bohol mayor drives out Red Cross team | Inquirer News
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RED CROSS ORDERED TO LEAVE. A father carrying his daughter receives aid from the Philippine Red Cross in Maribojoc, Bohol. The mayor later asked the Red Cross to leave the town, claiming the group had disrupted Maribojoc’s aid distribution system. But the Red Cross said the local authorities had asked it to hand over aid to them but it refused. ALANAH TORRALBA
MARIBOJOC, Bohol—Insisting that the municipality should handle the distribution of relief to earthquake survivors, Mayor Leoncio Evasco Jr. has told volunteers of the Philippine Red Cross to leave after they refused to hand over their items.
Evasco said he was slighted by the “arrogance” of their representative who, he claimed, demanded a list of beneficiaries so they could distribute the relief. “If they want to help, then give,” he said. “Don’t give any conditions.”
Local officials have demanded that relief brought by nongovernment groups for the survivors be handed over to them for distribution in line with the municipality’s centralized distribution system, two sources told the Inquirer in separate interviews.
Others would “help” in the distribution of the goods only to claim credit later, the sources said. They asked not to be identified for fear of reprisals from the officials.
In Manila, Red Cross secretary general Gwen Pang on Tuesday confirmed that Mayor Evasco had stopped the organization’s relief distribution because he wanted the stocks turned over to the local government.
“The local government knew the team was going there. In fact, we were there since Wednesday to assess the situation in the area, to identify who will be given the goods since our priority are those who are really in dire need,” Pang told the Inquirer.
“The people had lined up already when Mayor Evasco asked our people to stop. He told one of our personnel, ‘I’m very disappointed with you. I’m disappointed with the Red Cross. What I wanted was for you to endorse the goods to us and let us distribute the goods,’” Pang quoted the mayor as saying.
“He said that if we insist on doing it our way, we better stop and get out of the place,” she added.
Evasco, a former chief of staff of the tough-talking Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte, said he also confronted Red Cross chair Richard Gordon who went to Maribojoc on Friday.
“I’m not the one who is using an organization to promote his own political agenda,” Evasco told the Inquirer.
“Don’t turn us into puppies who follow you around because you have relief items,” he added.
Pang said the Red Cross could not endorse relief to politicians. She explained that the agency was following strict criteria in selecting beneficiaries because it did not have enough for all residents.
Moreover, it is accountable to their donors, she said. “Our system has been globally accepted, that is the same reason we get funds from our donors.”
Probe ordered
“But the mayor (Evasco) insisted that the barangay (village) captains can just receive the relief and sign on behalf of the affected families,” Pang said.
In Manila, Interior Secretary Mar Roxas directed the Philippine National Police to look into reports that some unscrupulous local government officials were arbitrarily keeping relief stocks in Bohol.
“There’s no reason to delay the delivery of relief to the victims of the earthquake. The government is ensuring that there will be enough supplies for the people,” Roxas said in a statement.
“It’s wrong to keep relief provided by the national and provincial governments inside their offices. If the reports are true, those responsible should be held accountable for relief hoarding,” he said.
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