President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. leads the distribution of aid to farmers affected by the El Niño phenomenon in Occidental Mindoro. (Photo from RTV Malacañang)
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said the government is continuously working to alleviate the effects of the El Niño.
Marcos held a site inspection in Occidental Mindoro to assess the impacts of the weather phenomenon.
As El Niño persists, more local governments declare state of calamity.
“Asahan po ninyo na ito po, kaming lahat ay sabay-sabay gumagalaw, para tiyakin na kahit papaano, kahit tayo na naghihirap sa pagbago ng panahon, at nararamdaman natin na climate change na tinatawag, asahan po ninyo upang gawin ang lahat ng kaya gawin ng pamahalaan,” said Marcos.
(You can expect that we are all moving together to guarantee that somewhat, even if we are struggling with the changing season, and we can already feel the so-called climate change, you can expect that the government is doing everything it can.)
He made the statement during the distribution of aid to farmers at the San Jose Municipal Gymnasium in San Jose, Occidental Mindoro.
At the site inspection, Marcos said that the impact of the heatwave is apparent on the farmers, but the government is working to ease the situation.
“Mayroon tayong pinaplano na dam ngayon na ilalagay para makoberan hanggang San Jose, Magsaysay at matubigan na,” said Marcos.
(We are planning a dam that will cover San Jose to Magsaysay, so these areas can already be irrigated.)
According to the Palace, the plan includes 11 units of pumps and engines, two units of rice harvesters, tractors, boats and more.
Marcos said the government is closely monitoring the situation in Occidental Mindoro.
While the government expects every province to be affected by the extreme heatwave, several localities in Mindoro have already declared a state of calamity because of the drought.