The wife of presidential candidate Manila Mayor Isko Moreno Domagoso on Wednesday visited Barangay Valladolid in Loboc, Bohol to personally hand over mattresses and relief goods to scores of families who were left homeless following the onslaught of Super Typhoon Odette.
Diana Lynn Ditan-Domagoso, who was accompanied by Loboc Mayor Leon Calipusan, said she and her team went to the municipality not only to hand over the initial batch of relief goods, but also to personally assess what further assistance would be sent later on to Boholanos taking shelter in evacuation centers as part of “Operation Tabang” of Team Isko Moreno.
“Don’t worry. That’s why I came here and I also want to come to you because we also have a lot of friends, and this is not about politics, we also have a lot of friends who want to send help but they don’t know who to let go of and they ask what else we can give,” Domagoso said.
“Like that, we still need mattresses, what else do they lack? But little by little, many people want to help not only politicians, but also ordinary people,” she added.
Domagoso also urged the victims not to lose hope despite the tragedy that befell them because the “bayanihan spirit” is very much alive among well-meaning Filipinos, especially Manileňos, who are ready to help and provide them with assistance.
“While you were devastated here, everybody was mobilized. In any case, even though what happened was not good, the Filipinos revived the bayanihan (spirit). So, I want you to know, you are not alone. Your countrymen can hear you,” Domagoso said.
Calipusan thanked Domagoso and the rest of Team Isko Moreno for visiting the municipality and provide immediate help to his constituents, particularly Barangay Villadolid which is one of the areas severely damaged by Odette.
According to him, almost all residents of Barangay Valladolid are in the evacuation area.
“That is why we are grateful to Mayor Isko’s group. You brought here what can be given to them to help make their lives a little better here at the evacuation center,” he said.
“Even though there is a lot of damage, Merry Christmas to everyone especially to Team Isko who visited us here,” Calipusan added.
For the Manila City government and Manileňos, extending assistance to calamity victims is nothing new under the leadership of Mayor Isko.
The city government of Manila had been regularly sending help either in manpower, relief goods or cash assistance to any part of the country hit by calamity.
Even before appeals for help were voiced by local governments hardest-hit by Odette, Moreno and the Manila City government wasted no time in putting together an assortment of assistance to help those who have been displaced by the super typhoon in the Visayas and Mindanao areas.
On Friday, the Manila City Council allotted P2.5 million in assistance — P1 million for Cebu, and P500,000 each for the provinces of Bohol, Leyte and Surigao del Norte.
Moreno also launched “Tulong ng Manilenyo sa mga Nasalanta ni Odette” donation drive and appealed to Manila residents and business groups to pitch in as a way of helping communities in southern and central Philippines devastated by the super typhoon.
Last Monday, Mayor Isko personally flew to Bohol to personally hand over to Governor Arthur Yap the P500,000 allotted by the city government, plus another P500,000 donated by well-meaning individuals and organizations, and four generator sets as initial assistance to Boholanos.