A total of 250,000 Davao del Norte beneficiaries benefitted from over P913 million worth of government services, as well as cash, education, and livelihood assistance, in the largest ever Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) of the Marcos administration held in Tagum City, Davao del Norte Friday until this Saturday.
Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, who led a historic delegation of 168 members of the House of Representatives in the Davao del Norte BPSF, expressed gratitude to all the local hosts, organizers and local government officials who made the Serbisyo Caravan a resounding success.
“We are very happy with the number of people served by the Bagong Pilipinas Service Fair brought by our dear President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. in Davao del Norte. Our citizens feel the help and protection of our government,” Romualdez, the leader of the 308-strong House of Representatives, said.
“This is the largest Service Caravan in terms of the number of beneficiaries helped. Almost 220,000 people have been served and given financial assistance. This is just proof that every Filipino citizen is a priority of President Marcos Jr.,” he added.
House Deputy Secretary General Sofonias Gabonada Jr., one of the leaders of the BPSF National Secretariat, said “the 250,000 beneficiaries will prove that the administration of President Marcos, with the strong support from Speaker Romualdez, the leader of the House of Representatives, has been doing everything to provide support for Filipinos.”
Gabonada said “BPSF, a flagship program of the Marcos administration, had already provided billions in financial aid, livelihood assistance and government services in 19 provinces.”
“The BPSF in Davao del Norte is the 19th installment of the Service Caravan, which is envisioned to visit all 82 provinces in the Philippines. It is the 8th in the whole of Mindanao, together with Zamboanga City, Bukidnon, Agusan del Norte, Sultan Kudarat, Davao de Oro and Tawi-Tawi,” Gabonada said, recalling that the Tawi-Tawi BPSF was attended by 95 House members.
Romualdez represented President Marcos Jr. during the BPSF in Davao del Norte, the opening of which was held at the Davao Del Norte Sports and Tourism Center.
On Thursday, President Marcos personally extended close to PhP60 million in financial assistance under the Presidential Assistance to Farmers and Fisherfolk (PAFF) to help Filipinos affected by the El Niño phenomenon in Davao Region.
In two-separate PAFF distribution events, President Marcos distributed PhP10 million each to the provinces of Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental in Tagum City, PhP19.52 million to Davao del Sur, and PhP10 million to Davao Occidental in Digos City.
President Marcos highlighted the government infrastructure projects designed to uplift the lives of residents in Davao as he recognized the huge developments in the region.
True to his “Mr. Rice” nickname, Romualdez also led the distribution of 300,000 kilograms of rice to thousands of beneficiaries in Davao del Norte.
Acting Davao Del Norte Governor De Carlo Uy and Tagum City Mayor Rey Uy served as the local co-hosts of the event. With 62 participating national government agencies, over 235 services were offered to more than 250,000 beneficiaries during the two-day festival of services in BPSF Davao Del Norte.
A total of P913 million worth of programs and services were rolled out in the province, some P483 million of which were in the form of cash assistance.
The Department of Social Worker and Development (DSWD) conducted continuous payouts across the province of Davao Del Norte, which reached a total of 80,000 individual AICS and AKAP beneficiaries amounting to P260 million.
Other province-wide activities include various scholarship programs of TESDA and CHED, as well as livelihood assistance for various sectors of pre-identified beneficiaries across Davao del Norte.
Also, the amount of in-kind assistance to the government programs beneficiaries in Davao del Norte has reached P429 million, including P30 million in health services, P392 million in agricultural services, P54 million in livelihood services, and P174 million in educational services.
Also, a Pagkakaisa Concert was scheduled to be held at the Davao Del Norte Sports and Tourism Center Friday night with free admission and expected to draw an estimated crowd of at least 40,000 people.
In his speech during the distribution of assistance to farmers, fisherfolk, and families in Tagum City Thursday, President Marcos said the administration is working double time to ensure residents will benefit from those projects.
Some of the projects are the Mawab-Maragusan-Caraga Road, Carmen-Tagum City Coastal Road, Tagum City Bypass Road and Mindanao Railway Project Phase. The projects are nearing completion and are expected to fast track development in the area once finished.
President Marcos also underscored the construction of the seven-story Davao Regional Medical Center (DRMC) in Apokon, Tagum City, which is seen to bring quality healthcare and medical services in the region.
The President said the administration is also on track in finishing the New Visayas-Tulalian Farm-to-Market Road that will improve transport of agricultural products to the market.
The visit is part of his program to aid the provinces of Davao de Oro, Davao del Norte and Davao Oriental.
The Chief Executive said he has ordered the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to fast track the completion of flood control projects in Davao Region.