A TOTAL of 7,000 residents of Oriental Mindoro received some P23 million in scholarship, farm and livelihood assistance under three separate programs conceived and formulated by the leadership of the House of Representatives in cooperation with national government agencies upon the directive of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr.

Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez led the distribution of financial assistance to qualified beneficiaries in the province under the following programs: Integrated Scholarships and Incentives Program (ISIP) for the Youth; the Start-up, Investment, Business Opportunity and Livelihood (SIBOL); and the Farmers Assistance for Recovery and Modernization (FARM).

These programs coincide with the holding of the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) in Oriental Mindoro on Saturday and Sunday, which is expected to deliver an estimated P1.2 billion in government aid to residents of the province.

“Napalago na po natin ang listahan ng serbisyong isinasabay natin sa Bagong Pilipinas ni Pangulong Bongbong Marcos. Malaki na ang nakukuhang tulong ng mga kababayan natin sa BPSF, dinagdagan pa natin dito sa ISIP, SIBOL at FARM para po lahat ng sektor ay ating natutulungan,” said Speaker Romualdez, leader of the 300-plus-member House of Representatives.

“Ito pong mga programang ito ay tugon natin sa hamon ng Pangulong Bongbong Marcos na ang mga kababayan nating nangangailangan sa lahat ng sektor ay ating tulungan. Ito ang esensya ng Bagong Pilipinas ni PBBM, ang walang naiiwang Pilipino sa serbisyo ng gobyerno,” he added.

In recognition of the effort of Speaker Romualdez to bring the BPSF services and various forms of assistance to the residents of the province, Mindoro Oriental Governor Humerlito Dolor presented him with a special “sablay” sash, with the words “Our Beloved Friend” written in the native language.

For the ISIP for the Youth, a total of 2,000 students in Oriental Mindoro received P2,000 each in financial assistance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

The distribution was held Saturday morning at the Divine Word College of Calapan Gymnasium, where Speaker Romualdez delivered the keynote address.

Also present in the distribution were Oriental Mindoro Gov. Humerlito Dolor and Rep. Arnan Panaligan.

The listed beneficiaries will also be enrolled under the Commission on Higher and Technical Education’s (CHED) Tulong Dunong Program (TDP). With this, they can get scholarship assistance of up to P15,000 per year.

The program targets students in the tertiary and vocational levels who are struggling with financial issues. Under the program, the beneficiaries stand to receive cash assistance every six months, which they can use to cover tuition and other expenses.

The program is a convergence project in cooperation with the DSWD, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the CHED, and the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

For SIBOL, a total of 3,000 small entrepreneurs received P5,000 in financial aid each at the Calapan Convention Center.

The SIBOL Program is an initiative of Speaker Romualdez in collaboration with the DSWD to provide support not only to would-be entrepreneurs but also to existing small and micro businesses and to individuals who are seeking more employment opportunities.

The program was launched in BPSF Siquijor a few weeks ago, a new form of assistance for small Filipino entrepreneurs to maximize various existing livelihood programs and services of the government and encourage micro and small businesses to thrive.

Speaker Romualdez, who served as keynote speaker during the SIBOL distribution, was joined by Dolor, Panaligan and Calapan Mayor Marilou Flores-Morillo.

For the FARM Program, 2,000 farmers received P2,000 worth of cash aid each during a simple program held Saturday morning at the Bulwagang Panlalawigan Gymnasium in Calapan, Oriental Mindoro.

The program helps struggling rice farmers and at the same time aid in increasing the buffer stock of rice of the Marcos government.

The FARM program is another initiative of Speaker Romualdez and the House of Representatives in collaboration with the National Food Authority (NFA), Department of Agriculture (DA), and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) as part of President Marcos’s commitment to help the agricultural sector.

Speaker Romualdez, in turn, asked the beneficiaries to sell at least 100 kilos of their produce of rice to help the NFA in boosting the government’s buffer stock that could be used in emergencies.

Under the FARM program, the Department of Agriculture (DA) identifies local farmer-beneficiaries.