President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. on Sunday handed over PhP80 million in financial assistance to typhoon Marce-hit municipalities in Cagayan for their immediate recovery.
In his speech during the aid distribution in Buguey, Cagayan, President Marcos assured affected residents of the government’s unwavering assistance.
“Hangga’t kailangan, ‘yung mga na-displaced na nasira nga ang bahay, walang tirahan kahit kung nasa evacuation center man sila o nasa bahay ng kanilang kamag-anak o kaibigan, ay magprovide pa rin kami nitong relief goods. Tuloy-tuloy pa rin hangga’t makabalik na sila sa kanilang bahay,” President Marcos said.
“Basta’t may pangangailangan pa kayo ipaabot ninyo sa amin,” he added.
President Marcos led the turnover of PhP10 million each to the municipalities of Aparri, Buguey, Sanchez-Mira, Santa Teresita, Baggao, Gattaran, Gonzaga, and Santa Ana. The funds were received by their respective local chief executives.
He also witnessed the distribution of assistance from different government agencies led by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DWSD).
The DSWD distributed 1,800 food packs; Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), 200 packs of 5kg rice and 20 boxes of sardines; and the National Irrigation Administration (NIA), 1,000 packs of 10kg rice.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) handed over PhP866.3 million in various interventions to farmers composed of hybrid rice seeds, fertilizer discount, vegetable seeds, native chickens, and ducks.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) reported that as of Saturday, Nov. 9, a total of 326,137 Family Food Packs and PhP130,769,647.70 in Food and Non-Food Items (FNIs) at DSWD Field Offices I and II are available for augmentation and relief assistance.
The NDRRMC said Marce affected a total of 15,518 families in Cagayan, 6,395 of them are sheltered at evacuation centers. More than 3,000 families are staying outside the evacuation centers.
Five municipalities experienced flooding in Cagayan. Nineteen Cagayan municipalities are currently experiencing power interruption, according to NDRRMC. Two bridges, and a road are impassable as of Saturday.
Cagayan officials want the national government to augment the air assets being used for assessment and transportation of logistics to isolated areas. They also require 30,000 boxes of Family Food Packs, and help to restore electricity in Northern Cagayan municipalities.
They are in need of construction materials for houses damaged.
Last Nov. 7, Typhoon Marce made landfall in the vicinity of Santa Ana and later in Sanchez-Mira, Cagayan.
It exited the Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) Nov. 8, with Tropical Cyclone Wind Signal No. 4 having been the highest warning level issued during its onslaught. |PND
