ILOILO CITY—The task force Bangon Panay on Thursday urged Congress to fast-track the passage of the rehabilitation fund for areas ravaged by Typhoon “Frank” (International codename: Fengshen).

Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas Raul Banias, the task force’s chief operations officer, said the release of the P8-billion “Paglaum Fund” for rehabilitation of affected areas was the priority, nearly five months after the typhoon brought unprecedented destruction to Western Visayas.

“The various agencies are using their own funds while waiting for the release of the supplemental budget. We hope that this could be released by the end of the year,” Banias told the Philippine Daily Inquirer at the sidelines of the task force meeting.

The House committee on appropriation on Wednesday endorsed for second reading House Bill No. 4824, which allocates P8 billion to finance the reconstruction of Iloilo, Antique, Aklan, Capiz, Guimaras and Negros Occidental, as well as the cities of Iloilo and Bacolod, Banias said.

The typhoon brought about the worst flooding in the region in recent years.

The bill is sponsored by Speaker Prospero Nograles and all congressmen of Western Visayas.

Banias said he hoped the House could pass the bill this month and submit it to the Senate.

“If the fund is released by the first quarter, it would not be a big delay yet for the implementation of our projects,” he said.

Some government agencies and local governments have reported using their own emergency funds for urgent projects because they had been constrained by the unavailability of additional funds.

The Department of Public Works and Highways alone has spent around P527 million for the repair and replacement of at least 27 bridges in Iloilo and Antique, roads and for flood control projects.

The other agencies that used their own funds included the Department of Education, Department of Health, Department of Agriculture, Department of Environment and Natural Resources and the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

Banias said the task force had to cut its targets after the initial proposal for P15 billion was slashed to P10 billion and then to P8 billion because of the unavailability of funds and the global economic crisis.