Duterte supporters bring ‘caravan’ to Cebu City
Scholarships, job opportunities, and fishing equipment were among the goods and services on offer when a group of administration supporters brought the Biyaya nga Pagbabago to Cebu yesterday.
The Kilusang Pagbabago (KP), organized by Cabinet Secretary Leoncio Evasco Jr., said it has targeted around 6.5 million of the poorest Filipinos whom they intend to help.
Undersecretary Joselito Libres of the Office of Participatory Governance (OPG) said this is why they are requiring all government agencies to help come up with effective strategies to reduce poverty.
Among those who came to the Biyaya ng Pagbabago Visayas launch were Libres, Undersecretary Dale Cabrera, Undersecretary John Vistal, and Assistant Secretary Jonas Soriano.
Thousands of supporters showed up on the Cebu Technological University grounds for the event.
The Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) gave 2,500 scholarships for Cebu, while the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) gave a multi-purpose building in Bangkal, Lapu-Lapu City. The Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) issued land patents.
The agriculture department’s Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources awarded 10 fishing nets, several fishing boat engines, and 22 FB Pagbabago fishing boats to 44 beneficiaries from Cebu’s 10 districts.
Visayas Lead Convenor Doris Mongara described the KP as a national movement of supporters of President Rodrigo Duterte with some 300,000 members in the Visayas. Mongaya said the administration’s anti-poverty program launch in the Visayas was the first of a series.
Libres said that uplifting the lives of 6.5 million Filipinos was promised by Duterte during the campaign in 2016. “This is now the target of NEDA and this is a challenge for us to realize it,” Libres said.
Participating government agencies included the Presidential Complaint Center and 8888, Department of Health, Department of Social Welfare and Development, Housing and Urban Development Coordinating Council, Philippine Information Agency, Social Security System, Cooperative Development Authority, Department of Labor and Employment, National Economic and Development Authority, and Department of Interior and Local Government.