Members of the House of Representatives attend the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair in Tagum City, Davao del Norte on Friday, June 7, 2024. (File photo from Gabriel P. Lalu/ INQUIRER.net)
DAVAO CITY, Philippines — At least P1.2 billion worth of government services and cash aid have been distributed to the Davao Region during a Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF).
House Speaker Ferdinand Romualdez said this in his speech at the BPSF held on Thursday at the University of Southeastern Philippines in Davao City.
He noted that 250,000 residents are expected to benefit from the fair.
According to the speaker, he and a contingent of lawmakers are returning to Davao City to relay President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s message — that Mindanao is an integral part of the administration’s vision of a new society.
“Nagbalik tayong muli dito para ipabatid ang mensahe ni Pangulong Marcos na mahalaga ang mga taga-Mindanao sa Bagong Pilipinas. No one is left behind,” Romualdez said.
(We are back here to relay the message of President Marcos that Mindanao is very important in Bagong Pilipinas. No one is left behind.)
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House Deputy Secretary General Sofonias Gabonada, Jr., an official of the BPSF national secretariat, said the P1.2 billion includes services from 38 participating government agencies, while a P1 billion cash assistance was given to the poor.
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Of the total number of beneficiaries, 150,000 Davao Region residents got cash aid from the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Ayuda Para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP).
50,000 received cash aid through the Department of Labor and Employment’s Tulong Pang-hanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers Program.
Almost half a million kilograms of rice were distributed to various beneficiaries who attended the BPSF.