President Rodrigo Duterte himself spearheaded efforts to help residents in Surigao provinces affected by tropical storm "Auring."
President Duterte assures help for "Auring" victims
President Rodrigo himself led the national government's efforts to aid victims of tropical storm "Auring" in northern Mindanao.
Accompanied by Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go, Duterte conducted an aerial survey on several areas affected by "Auring" shortly after arriving at the Tandag Airport past 3 p.m.
The President then met with his Cabinet secretaries and local officials at the Villa Maria Luisa Hotel to discuss disaster relief efforts and long-term interventions on the affected sectors.
Agriculture Secretary Willam Dar, one of the Cabinet officials who accompanied Duterte, distributed P300,000 worth of milled rice, chicks, and assorted vegetable seeds to farmers.
DA-13 information officer Emmylou Presilda said the immediate assistance was intended for families whose farms and livelihood were directly affected by the typhoon.
“We are still finalizing the complete data on the total number of hectares damaged and the number of farmers and fishermen affected by the typhoon. These data are coming from the Municipal Agriculture Offices (MAOs) in the province,” Presilda added.
Another P217 million worth of seeds, farm machinery, and equipment were handed over to the provincial government and the different farmers’ groups in the area, she said.
In addition, DA-13 also turned over more than P149 million worth of farm equipment and machinery through the mechanization program of the Philippine Center for Postharvest and Mechanization (PHilMech).
The Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC), meanwhile, released on the same day an indemnification fund totaling P1.2 million, according to Presilda. (ONT)