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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL No. _____ 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Introduced by  
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,  
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,  
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
AN ACT 
PROVIDING FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A MEMORIAL  
FOR THE VICTIMS OF SUPERTYPHOON YOLANDA IN TACLOBAN 
CITY, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR  
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
November 1, 2013. Supertyphoon Yolanda was one of the worst natural disasters 
to strike the country in recent memory.  The death toll was apocalyptic in magnitude 
and the damage to property was biblical in proportion.  Conservative reports from the 
National Risk Reduction Management Council (NDRRMC) tallied 6,300 dead, 28,688 
injured, and 1,062 still missing.1 However, survivors’ group People’s Surge placed the 
number of casualties up to 19,000 people, citing the uncounted dead in the far-flung 
areas of Eastern Visayas. The total cost of damages reached some ₱95.5 billion. 
Days prior to Yolanda’s landfall, the Philippine Atmospheric Geophysical and 
Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) already gave warnings that a 
supertyphoon was about to enter the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) that could 
generate storm surges of up to 17 feet high. President Benigno Aquino III addressed the 
country, confidently saying that all preparations are already in place and that the country 
1 “Final Report re: Effects of Typhoon “Yolanda” (Haiyan).” National Disaster Risk Reduction and 
Management Council, November 2013. 
https://ndrrmc.gov.ph/attachments/article/1329/FINAL_REPORT_re_Effects_of_Typhoon_YOLAN
DA_(HAIYAN)_06-09NOV2013.pdf  
August 3, 2022
12:13 pm
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is ready for the onslaught of the supertyphoon, which came in with an estimated packed 
winds of up to 280 kph and gustiness up to 315 kph.2 
 
But the aftermath of the disaster manifested the lack of comprehension of the 
warnings released by PAGASA, from the local government units to the highest office 
in the Executive Department.  
 
The response was dismal, there was a clear lack of body bags, and the dead were 
left lying on the streets for days. Authorities had a difficult time identifying bodies.  And 
worst, the people were left almost entirely to their own devices on fleeing, taking 
shelter, and surviving, even for days afterward. 
 
Additionally, reconstruction efforts have been abysmal. According to the 
National Economic Development Authority (NEDA), government allocation for 
Yolanda relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation amounted to approximately ₱144.4 
billion as of June 2016, nearly two years after. While 71% of this has been released, 
however, government agencies’ submissions indicate that only 53.4% has been 
disbursed. The overall weighted accomplishment or physical completion of projects 
funded by these releases was only 40%, while 27.7% are ongoing and 33% have not yet 
been started.3 
 
Independent think-tank IBON Foundation noted that agencies tasked to facilitate 
survivors’ fundamental needs such as housing, food, livelihood, and water received 
rehabilitation funds, but had very low overall weighted accomplishment.  The National 
Housing Authority (NHA) received the largest allocation amounting to ₱39.2 billion, 
but the Department of Budget Management (DBM) reported that its overall weighted 
accomplishment was only 12.3%, with 45% ongoing and 42.6% not yet started, three 
years after the disaster struck.  The overall weighted accomplishment of the Department 
of Agriculture (DA), which received ₱1.5 billion, was only 14.1%, with 11.6% ongoing 
and 74.3% not yet started.  The overall weighted accomplishment of the Local Water 
Utilities Administration (LWUA), which received ₱737 million, was only 2.9%, with 
2.5% ongoing and 94.6% not yet started.4 
 
Additionally, IBON Foundation noted, on the fourth-year anniversary 
of Yolanda, that only 25% percent or 50,891 of the 205,128 houses for the victims have 
been built. Of the completed units, only 27 percent are occupied.5 
 
                                                             
2 Sabillo, Kristine Angeli. “Aquino: PH ready to face supertyphoon ‘Yolanda.’” Inquirer.net, 
November 2013. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/522661/aquino-ph-ready-to-face-supertyphoon-yolanda  
3 “Use funds to hasten Yolanda rehab, Duterte gov’t urged.” IBON, November 2016. 
https://www.ibon.org/use-funds-to-hasten-yolanda-rehab-duterte-govt-urged/  
4 Ibid 
5 “Only 25% of houses for Yolanda survivors completed after four years — research.” CNN, 
November 2017. https://www.cnnphilippines.com/news/2017/11/9/Yolanda-houses-survivors-
incomplete-after-four-years.html  


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The poor preparedness, the lack of response and relief, and the abysmal 
reconstruction efforts by the government resulted in the massive death toll and 
continuing injustice for the survivors. A Memorial in Tacloban City will serve as a 
marker in memory of the victims including the many unidentified dead buried in mass 
graves, and as a reminder to our leaders and the people to work towards a disaster-
resilient nation.  
This Bill was first filed during the 16th Congress by Bayan Muna Rep. Neri 
Colmenares as House Bill 4100. It was refiled in the 17th and 18th Congresses as HBs 
6564 and 3452, respectively. 
In this regard, the immediate approval of this Bill is earnestly sought. 
________________________________ 
Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO 
ACT Teachers Party-List 
________________________________ 
Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS 
GABRIELA Women’s Party 
________________________________ 
Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
KABATAAN Party-List 


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Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Batasan Hills, Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL No. _____ 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
Introduced by  
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,  
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,  
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL 
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 
AN ACT 
PROVIDING FOR THE CONSTRUCTION OF A MEMORIAL FOR THE 
VICTIMS OF SUPERTYPHOON YOLANDA IN TACLOBAN CITY, 
APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR  
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress 
assembled: 
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “Yolanda Memorial Act of 
2022.” 
SEC. 2. Construction of the Memorial. – A memorial for the victims of Supertyphoon 
Yolanda shall be constructed in Tacloban City under the supervision of the Department 
of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) in coordination with the Local Government 
Units (LGUs) and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines. 
SEC. 3. Inscription. – A message shall be inscribed unto the base of the memorial and 
shall read as:  
“In memory of the thousands of victims of Supertyphoon Yolanda 
May this remind all: 
That calamities have been transformed into monstrosities due to climate change; 
That the leaders of this country must employ their utmost knowledge and care for the 
people, 
And to work for a disaster-resilient nation; 
That appropriate, decisive, and climate-adaptive policies must be enforced  
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To help protect the lives and livelihood of the people and mitigate the effects of 
disasters, 
To prevent losses should another calamity as Yolanda come our way anew. 
 
May this never happen again.” 
 
The inscription shall have Filipino and Waray versions. 
 
SEC. 4. Implementing Agency. – The DPWH shall be the lead implementing agency 
of this project in coordination with the concerned LGUs. 
 
SEC. 5. Appropriations. – The amount necessary to implement the provisions of this 
Act shall be charged against the allocations in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) 
of the Department of Public Works and Highways. 
 
SEC. 6. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen days (15 days) after its complete 
publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
 
 
Approved,