Governor Albert Garcia on Tuesday assured residents in 11 towns and this city in the province that they do not have to worry about shortage of food, especially rice, during the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) as donations are continuously pouring in.

The provincial government has been distributing food packs, hygiene kits and 25 kilos of rice to each household in the province’s 236 barangays.

The new rice donations came from LR de Guzman Construction with 550 cavans; Cesar Bulaon, who gave 100 sacks; and Romeo Carlo Lopez, Ruth Villanueva, Sterifex Medical System, Sariven Enterprise, Berzan Enterprise and Preans Enterprises sharing in 50 cavans each.

Aside from rice donations, Garcia said they have purchased 14,000 sacks of rice from the province of Isabela and a still unspecified number of bags from the provincial office of the National Food Authority.

Seafront Shipyard & Marine Services Corporation, meanwhile, donated 30,000 kilos of dressed chickens.

Garcia also announced that the provincial government has set aside PHP41 million to feed 136,375 households considered as the poorest of the poor through the “Kusina sa Barangay” program.

“The food to be cooked in every village will serve to augment the rations regularly undertaken,” the governor said

Under the “Kusina sa Barangay”, village officials will lead in the preparation of food to be distributed to the poorest households in their respective areas.

Garcia called for volunteers to help the officials as cooks, helpers and food distributors. (PNA)