Arroyo signs into law Bacolor rehabilitation measure

MANILA, Philippines - President Arroyo signed into law Sunday a bill creating the Bacolor Rehabilitation Council (BRC), a Malacañang statement said. The law intends to complete the rehabilitation of Bacolor, Pampanga after being buried in lahar and other volcanic debris since the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo in 1991. Under the BRC law, about P1.5 billion in special funds will be allocated in the 2009 General Appropriations Act (GAA), a P1.5 billion in special funds would be allocated for the rehabilitation of the lahar-affected town. The BRC will be headed by the regional director of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) - Regional Office 3, as chairperson, and the mayor of Bacolor, Pampanga, as vice chairperson, the statement added. The BRC is tasked to draft a comprehensive rehabilitation plan for the town of Bacolor that shall be submitted to the President of the Philippines for approval, as well to meet regularly to evaluate the progress of the rehabilitation plan. The other members of the BRC are the governor of Pampanga, and the Region 3 directors of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), Department of Agriculture (DA), and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). - Aie Balagtas See, GMANews.TV