CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga (PIA) -- Beneficiaries from flood-affected towns in Pampanga expressed their gratitude to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. after receiving various assistance from national government agencies.
 
Rice farmer Reynaldo Waje from the municipality of Mexico said the financial grant he received will be used as an additional fund for fertilizer and herbicide.
 
He is one of the 100 rice farmers who received P5,000 each from the Department of Agriculture (DA).
 
“This is a big help for us farmers, especially now that we were hit by the calamity… We have so many problems after the calamity… We want to buy herbicides, we want to buy pesticides, but the things that we use in farming are higher in cost now,” Waje said.
 
He added that seeing the President, together with cabinet secretaries and local government officials, extending help to those in need elated the farmers amid these trying times.
 
Meanwhile, Gino Lumba from Sta. Rita town highlighted that the payout granted to him will aid for his family’s daily expenses after he was forced to resign from his call center job to take care of his sick father.
 
He was one of the 5,000 beneficiaries who received P4,600 each under the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers Program of Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
 

“This is a huge help for us, especially for my fellow Kapampangans from Sta. Rita, Pampanga, This is a very good program to give financial assistance to those who don’t have stable jobs. This is a big help for us, and I hope that the beloved President will continue to help us,” he stated.

Lumba added that to contribute to the country, he will try to pursue his education and study well to help his parents.

In his brief message during the event, Marcos highlighted that he will continue to oversee the effective distribution of various assistance to those who are in need. “The national government is here, and is always ready to extend help to those in need,” he added.
 
Meanwhile, DA also awarded a certificate worth P21.6 million to the province of Pampanga.
 
It includes 13,354 bags of certified seeds worth P20.2 million to 8,723 farmer-beneficiaries; 186 bags of hybrid yellow corn and 15 bags of open-pollinated variety worth P1.1 million to 154 farmer-beneficiaries; and assorted vegetable seeds worth P230,000 to 162 farmer-beneficiaries.
 
DOLE likewise bestowed P6.4 million worth of livelihood assistance to the towns of Candaba, Macabebe, Masantol, Arayat, Porac, Sta. Ana, and Mexico under its Integrated Livelihood Program.
 
Department of Social Welfare and Development, for its part, distributed food packs and P10,000 each to 1,000 beneficiaries under the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation Program. (CLJD/JLDC-PIA 3)