President Benigno Aquino and Vice President Jejomar Binay together with Iligan City Mayor Lawrence Cruz and Gawad Kalinga Executive Director Luis Oquinena during an inspection at the Bayanihan Village, a resettlement site for victims of tropical storm Washi, in Iligan City.
“The President paid tribute to the values espoused by his mother by traveling to Iligan and Cagayan de Oro to join shelter builds and conduct inspections in areas that were devastated by Typhoon Sendong (Washi),” Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said in a statement sent to the Mindanao Examiner.
“President Aquino is committed to a rehabilitation process that will help the victims get back on their feet at the soonest possible time, while also ensuring that the assistance provided to local government units will reach those who need it the most. He also believes that communities should be rebuilt in areas out of harm’s way,” he said.
Lacierda said the Aquino administration is showing its commitment not just restoring communities stricken by disaster, or to the people who lost their livelihoods, but also to the very principle that no one should be left behind.
He said the project is a joint initiative of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, the local governments, the National Housing Authority, and volunteers from Habitat for Humanity and Gawad Kalinga.
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