MANILA, Philippines – To ensure that donations go to typhoon survivors, broadcast and telecommunications giants, along with a top accounting firm, will manage the upcoming Super Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) multi-donor fund.

Rehabilitation Secretary Panfilo Lacson said the following will form the fund’s board of trustees:

• ABS-CBN
• GMA-7
• PLDT-Smart
• Globe Telecom
• Washington Sycip

Asked who will likely be chosen to audit it, Rehabilitation Undersecretary Danilo Antonio said on Friday, January 24: “It depends on the board of trustees, which is a private group. They will be the ones deciding, but let’s just say they will surely assign it to somebody with unquestioned integrity, one of the major international auditing firms.”

The trustees will come up with their policies in the next few days.

Lacson on Thursday, January 23, said the multi-donor fund is meant especially for small groups or individuals who want to donate.

He described them as “those who want to just part with their money out of the goodness of their hearts, but do not have the organization or time to commit to this humanitarian effort.”

Vowing transparency, Lacson said the fund will be “managed entirely by very credible and reputable top executives from big business groups.”

How to donate

Lacson said peso and dollar accounts for the Yolanda/Haiyan multi-donor fund have been opened at the Bangko de Oro (BDO) branch along Ayala Avenue, Makati City.

He said donors can deposit through the following BDO-Ayala Avenue account numbers:

• Peso savings account number: 005-310-633-988
• Dollar savings account number: 105-310-463-926

Other savings accounts will soon be opened, too, at Metrobank, Rizal Commercial Banking Corporation, Philippine National Bank, and Bank of the Philippine Islands, according to Lacson.

He added a “map-based website” will soon be put up “to make sure that the funds that people donate will be transparent enough for anyone who cares to see.”

Alongside this multi-donor fund, at least 9 corporate giants pledged to lead rehabilitation efforts in Yolanda-hit communities.

The Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) and the group of Enrique Razon, which is known for its ports and casinos, will lead the rehabilitation of Tacloban, the city worst hit by Yolanda.

The Philippines needs at least P360.9 billion to rebuild 16 million lives after Yolanda, according to the government’s rehabilitation blueprint. – Rappler.com