The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has provided initial assistance of 4,764 food packs to residents in the cities of San Jose del Monte, Meycauayan and Malolos and in the towns of Pandi and San Miguel amid the Luzon-wide enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus disease (Covid-19).
Jeffrey Espiritu, project development officer of DSWD-Bulacan, said Tuesday 1,800 food packs were distributed to residents in San Jose Del Monte, 655 in Meycauayan, 609 in Malolos, 1,300 in San Miguel and 400 in Pandi.
He said this is the agency’s first wave of assistance to local government units in the province.
Espiritu also said the number of food packs that DSWD distributed in each town/city is based upon the request of the local government.
“It serves in addition to the shared assistance of the local government of food supply to their respective villages,” he said.
Malolos City Mayor Gilbert Gatchalian said the priority for the food supply assistance are those who were displaced from work due to the ECQ.
“These also include daily living income (earners) such as tricycle drivers, jeepney drivers, dealers of various goods. The senior citizens and the persons with disabilities (PWDs) are also provided food packs,” he said.
Pandi Mayor Rico Roque, on the other hand, said they prioritized National Housing Authority (NHA) residents.
Roque said he asked every household in the housing area to bring out a chair or bench during the distribution of food packs to observe social distancing.
Meanwhile, Espiritu said the DSWD is already preparing food packs for distribution in the towns of San Ildefonso, Doña Remedios Trinidad (DRT), Norzagaray and Plaridel.
Each food pack contains six kilos of rice, four cans of corned beef, four cans of sardines and six 3-in-1 coffee packages.
The Bulacan Provincial Health Office said as of Tuesday, there was a total of 28 Covid-19 cases in the province with 12 deaths.
There were also 305 patients under investigation (PUIs), of whom 110 were already cleared and 1,619 persons under monitoring (PUMs). (PNA)
