Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian on Monday (Oct. 23) expressed gratitude to all local officials in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) for their warm reception during the rice distribution among beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
Secretary Gatchalian and Special Assistant to the President (SAP) Secretary Anton Lagdameo led the distribution of rice to 4Ps beneficiaries in Bongao, Tawi-Tawi and in Jolo, Sulu.
The rice distribution activities were facilitated by Tawi-Tawi Governor Ysmael I. Sali and Sulu Governor Abdusakur Tan.
“Thank you Gov. Sali of Tawi-Tawi, and Gov. Tan of Sulu for the warm reception,” Secretary Gatchalian said in his Facebook post.
Each 4Ps beneficiary received a 25-kilo sack of premium Jasmine rice, which is part of the confiscated rice by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in the Port of Zamboanga last May and later donated to the DSWD on orders from President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.
The rice distribution is part of the Marcos administration’s efforts to ensure sufficient food supply among poor households amid the rising prices of rice and other basic commodities.
The DSWD chief and SAP Lagdameo were accompanied by DSWD Undersecretaries Eduardo Punay, Monina Josefina Romualdez and Allan Tanjusay; Asst. Secretary Florentino Loyola Jr.; and DSWD Region IX (Zamboanga Peninsula) Asst. Regional Director Ma. Socorro Macaso.
The DSWD team’s first stop was in Bongao, Tawi—Tawi where they were warmly received by Governor Ysmael Sali and Vice-Governor Al Syed A. Sali.
This was followed by the rice distribution in Jolo, Sulu which was made possible through the kind assistance of Governor Tan.
Later in the day, the DSWD’s Field Office -9 (Zamboanga Peninsula) distributed rice to residents of Lamitan City in Basilan province which was witnessed by Governor Jim Hataman, Lamitan City Mayor Roderick Furigay, Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer Anwary Akalun and DSWD FO-9 representative Ma. Corazon Sumicad.
“The government continues to turn seized smuggled rice into a lifeline for struggling families in line with the directive of President Marcos to Secretary Gatchalian,” DSWD Asst. Secretary for Strategic Communications Romel Lopez said.#
