ILOILO City – More than the cash assistance, the thought that they were not left behind also mattered to the recipients of COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and Department of Tourism (DOT).
Christian Evangelista, a 42-year-old family man from M.H. Del Pilar, Jaro, was more than grateful.
“‘Gapasalamat kami kay bisan paano nadumduman kami. Daku ‘to nga bulig sa amon kay pigado ang byahe. Ang (presyo sang) diesel nagasaka nga nagasaka,” Evangelista told Panay News.
Under the DOLE-CAMP, each beneficiary received P5,000 cash assistance.
Evangelista, a public utility jeepney driver since 1997, hoped their sector won’t be left out should there be aid from the government.
“Kon may ihatag ang gobyerno indi lang nila kami pagkalimtan kay nagapangabudlay man kami sa dalanon. Kis-a maayo man may dal-on ka puli, kis-a waay man kay pigado ang byahe,” he added.
Fellow driver Protacio also thanked the government, particularly the DOLE, for the cash assistance.
Thirty-six-year-old Protacio, a driver for 15 years, has six kids. He said he used the P5,000 cash assistance he received to buy rice and food for his family.
“Salamat gid ginhatagan kami… Daku nga bulig. Nalipay gid kay may barakal bugas kag sud-an. Yawat pa kay apektado daan ang byahe kay pandemic,” said Protacio, noting that since the start of the pandemic, their daily income dropped by more than 50 percent.
Evangelista and Protacio were members of the Ungka-UI Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association (UUJODA).
Several members of the Iloilo City Loop Alliance of Jeepney Operators and Drivers Association (ICLAJODA) also received cash assistance from DOLE.
“Ang ini nga programa sang DOLE paagi sa aton pinalangga nga (Iloilo City) congresswoman, (Julienne) Baronda, damu gid nga drivers ang nabuligan… Nagapasalamat gid kami sang daku,” said Raymundo “Boyet” Parcon, president of ICLAJODA.
At least 5,290 beneficiaries in this southern city benefited from the CAMP cash assistance distributed this August through the legislative office of Baronda.
It was the office of the congresswoman that helped process and facilitate the aid for target beneficiaries.
Salon workers and other tourism-related workers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic benefited from CAMP, too.
According to Baronda, DOLE secretary Silvestre Bello III was very supportive of the initiatives to create job opportunities for residents of this city.
MORE ‘AYUDA’
For 2021, DOLE allocated P45 million in assistance to Iloilo City through its Government Internship Program (GIP), Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Displaced / Disadvantaged Workers Program (TUPAD) and CAMP.
“These programs on employment are crucial to reviving our economy,” said Baronda, adding that “strengthening the purchasing power of the Ilonggos will also improve the condition of our local enterprises.”
DOLE also included 50 vendors from Jaro Big Market and Mandurriao Public Market in its NegoKart Project.
“The NegoKart Project is aligned with our initiative to improve the lives of the Ilonggos. Beneficiaries enjoy monetary, logistical and training support to ensure that their businesses become sustainable,” said Baronda.
Baronda added that Bello had also been “vital in helping our overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) cope with the pandemic.”
The “DOLE-AKAP for OFWs” was launched specifically to provide financial assistance to land-based and sea-based OFWs who lost their jobs to COVID-19. Data showed around P200 million was released to 22,725 OFWs in Western Visayas.
Further, through the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA_, an attached agency of DOLE, 67,576 OFWs from Region 6 – 6,731 were from Iloilo City – were repatriated.
Moreover, OWWA has also been providing assistance for the education for the children of OFWs. According to OWWA in Region 6, as of Feb. this year, P1.14 million was spent for the Alalay sa Pag-aaral para sa mga anak-OFWs sa Panahon ng Pandemya program, and another P1.3 million for Project EASE. or the Education Assistance through Scholarship in Emergencies./PN
