President Duterte has approved a measure extending the availability and release of funds for victims of human rights violations during the martial law regime, Malacañang announced yesterday.
In Joint Resolution No. 4, the distribution of the P10-billion reparation for approved and qualified claimants would be extended until Dec. 31, 2019.
The resolution, signed by the President last Feb. 22, was announced by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea yesterday. A copy was also released to the media yesterday.
Under the resolution, the Bureau of Treasury and Land Bank of the Philippines have been authorized to release the funds and ensure payment of the claims made by the martial law victims.
The Commission on Human Rights has also been assigned to administer the effective distribution of the funds to qualified victims or their heirs or representatives as provided by Republic Act No. 10368 also known as the Human Rights Victims Reparation and Recognition Act of 2013 as amended by RA 10766.
The latest presidential action sought to address the time constraint on the distribution of funds and allow the claimants to encash their checks, according to Medialdea.
“Ang tagal nang hawak-hawak nila yun, di ba? Kung hindi namain binulabog ni Presidente iyan, hindi pa lalabas ‘yan,” Medialdea said.
“It was only two years ago when we called the members of the commission…Ano ba ito? Hindi pa tapos ginagawa ninyo, kung tapos na I-release nyo na, kung di pa tapos, bayaran nyo na, kung may kulang pa compensation,” he said. (Genalyn Kabiling)
