Pasay City – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) invites more volunteers who are willing to provide transportation assistance to internally displaced persons (IDPs) from Eastern Visayas who have been arriving at the Villamor Air Base.

DSWD-National Capital Region Director Ma. Alicia S. Bonoan, who is on top of the operations at Villamor, appealed to vehicle owners and transport groups to volunteer for ‘Hatod Kabayan,’ a service that will provide free transportation to the IDPs in the air base so they can be brought to their relatives here in Metro Manila or in nearby provinces.

Those who would like to volunteer may contact 09062988532 or 09989821398.  They may also go directly to Villamor Air Base and register at DSWD’s ‘Hatod Kabayan’ station.

‘Hatod Kabayan’ replaces the ‘Oplan Hatid’ initiative of the civilian volunteers.

“We are thankful to the organizers of ‘Oplan Hatid’ as they were able to help some 3,591 families and 4,288 individuals be reunited with their families here,” Dir. Bonoan said.

As of December 4, some 4,934 families or 20,928 individuals have arrived in Metro Manila.# # #