Senator Bong Go (photo)

Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go urged government agencies to step up aid on vulnerable sector struggling to get access to essential commodities amid the surge in coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) cases.

A statement from his office said the senator continues to help the national government in delivering basic public services to vulnerable sectors around the country.

Go stressed the need to work together to keep struggling individuals and families safe, secure and healthy as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to adversely affect lives and livelihoods.

Go’s office conducted relief missions in Tagbilaran City and the towns of Maribojoc and Loon in Bohol last Thursday, the statement said.

“Mga kababayan, magtulungan, magmalasakit at magbayanihan tayo sa ating kapwa. Huwag tayo mawalan ng pag-asa dahil nandito ang gobyernong palaging nagmamalasakit sa inyo. Hindi kayo pababayaan ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte at ng administrasyong ito (My fellow citizens, let us work together, care for and help one another. Let us not lose our hope as the government is here to always care for you. President Rodrigo Duterte and this administration will not abandon you),” the senator said in a video shown during the relief operations in Bohol.

He said some vulnerable people may be struggling to access food, medicines and other essential items at this time of the pandemic and thus, urged village chiefs to always look after the welfare of their constituents, especially the poor, as they are the first public official who can provide aid.

Go’s staff provided meals, vitamins, masks and face shields to a total of 1,362 residents at the Saulog Gym in Tagbilaran City, People’s Center in Maribojoc and Loon Municipal Gymnasium.

The beneficiaries consisted of market vendors and persons with disabilities.

Selected beneficiaries also received new pairs of shoes while some were given computer tablets which their children can use for their blended learning activities. Others were equipped with bicycles to improve their access to basic needs and services amid the ongoing crisis.

To help ease the villagers’ financial hardships, representatives from the Department of Social Welfare and Development distributed financial assistance through its Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program.

The Department of Trade and Industry and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, in turn, committed to extending further aid based on their existing assistance programs.

Go reminded Boholanos that they can seek medical aid through the Malasakit Center at the Governor Celestino Gallares Memorial Hospital in Tagbilaran City and the Don Emilio Del Valle Memorial Hospital in Ubay.

The centers are a one-stop shop for the government’s medical assistance programs. Its partner agencies include the DSWD, Department of Health, PhilHealth, and Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

The Malasakit Centers program was institutionalized under Republic Act 11463, also known as the Malasakit Centers Act of 2019, which Go, as chair of the Senate committee on health, principally authored and sponsored in the Senate.

President Duterte signed the law in December 2019.