LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Rep. Eric Yap recently turned over wing vans to the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to fast track delivery of relief goods to disaster-stricken areas in Benguet Province and the Cordillera region.
Yap, together with House Speaker Martin Romualdez, turned over the wing van to DSWD Secretary Erwin Tulfo during a simple rite at the agency’s central office.
“Para sa Benguet, para sa Cordillera, para mas madaling makaabot ang food and non-food packs pag may mga kalamidad sa atin sa Benguet at mga katabing probinsya, para mas madaling maramdaman ang pamahalaan, kaya tayo nag donate ng mga wing vans para sa DSWD. Consistent with our Mobile Tulong agenda, we need our services to be closer to the people, more accessible and efficient,” Congressman Yap stressed.
Yap added the recent calamity which struck the region serves as a wake–up call for the government in delivering relief packs to affected individuals particularly in far flung areas.
Yap also lauded Tulfo in steering DSWD in reaffirming its mandate to develop, implement and coordinate social protection and poverty-reduction solutions for and with the poor, vulnerable and disadvantaged who deserve the available assistance from the government.
“Sec. Tulfo is doing a great job at the helm of the department and we are here to help. Speaker Romualdez has been consistently helping the department as well so as you can see, all hands on deck para mas maraming matulungang tao. We need the DSWD to sustain its proactive response and be consistent with their agenda na Bawat Buhay Mahalaga,” Yap said.
The Benguet lawmaker assured the residents he will work out the needed funds to sustain the provision of appropriate assistance to the needy to cope up with the prevailing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
DSWD is in charge of the implementation of the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS), Kapit-bisig Laban sa Kahirapan–Comprehensive and Integrated Delivery of Social Services (KALAHI-CIDSS), Sustainable Livelihood Program (SlP) among other poverty alleviation and reduction programs for qualified recipients.
During his term as the province’s caretaker Congress representative from January 20, 2929 to June 30, 2022, Congressman Yap accessed hundreds of millions of pesos worth of assistance from various agencies which were distributed to qualified residents from the different barangays who were heavily impacted by the pandemic after they reportedly lost their jobs and other economic activities.
Yap was elected as the province’s District Representative to the House of Representatives during the May 9, 2022 elections following his decision to be domiciled in Benguet as his residence for him to be able to continue his legislative work aside from sourcing out the needed funds to continuously implement priority programs, projects and activities for his constituency.