Department of Social Welfare and Development Secretary (DSWD) Judy M. Taguiwalo is on the second day of her rounds in the Northern Philippines provinces severely affected by Typhoon Lawin.

Accompanied by other officials of the DSWD, she has been turning over the DSWD and the national government’s augmentation support to local government units (LGUs) in the form of family food packs (FFPs).

Yesterday, she was in Tuguegarao; today she has been to Maconacon, Divilacan, and Ilagan in Isabela province. As of this writing, she is on her way to Penablanca and Enrile.

Sec. Taguiwalo said that it is important for the Rodrigo Duterte administration to provide immediate relief to Filipinos affected the by the two recent Typhoons – Karen and Lawin. She said that the sooner that actions are done to see the situation on the ground and to address the immediate needs of those affected, the better the chances that the those affected will recover.

The Secretary also repeated the message of Pres. Duterte that the DSWD and all agencies of government must become “color blind” when it comes to helping the needy and the poor.

“We must help all Filipinos who come to us for help – regardless of their political affiliations or persuasions. The relief goods we distribute come from taxpayers – we have to give them to those in need as soon as possible. This is also why we will work hard to give out the emergency shelter assistance (ESA) that calamity-affected families are entitled to immediately, not months or years later. We are also duty-bound to use all funds and resources for the purpose they are intended: assist the needy; improve lives; strengthen communities.”

“We are going around the barangays and communities that ‘Lawin’ devastated not only to give out relief goods, but to also assure Filipinos that the national government is here to support them in their time of need. We are constantly coordinating with officials of the LGUs on our relief efforts, and at the same time we are also determining the depth and extent of the poverty of Filipinos who live in the provinces.  What we are discovering affirms the truth that the Philippines is far from being developed, and that so much needs to be done by way of comprehensive economic and social reforms to address the poverty of millions. We also see that people are in serious need of support in the form of social services – they need more public hospitals, more schools, better roads, increased access to government services,” she said.

Sec. Taguiwalo said that her visit to Northern Philippines also enables her to see more clearly the necessity to implement programs that will provide people with steady  livelihood opportunities. She said that the DSWD will strengthen its programs to help the poor gain employment and means of livelihood through its SLP, or the Sustainable Livelihood Program. She also said that communities can also unite to push for infrastructure projects through the empowerment program of the DSWD – the Kalahi-CIDSS scheme.

Sec. Taguiwalo has also instructed the DSWD’s Disaster Response  Assistance and Management Bureau (DReamB) unit to form a team to augment the supplies for the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) because there have been landslides causing casualties, particularly in Kalinga and Apayao.#