THE Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) is being held until Sunday in Bukidnon and is expected to roll out over P379 million in cash assistance and government services to an estimated 110,000 citizens of the province.

The BPSF in Bukidnon – the seventh province so far to enjoy the full-service caravans of some 58 government agencies implementing 176 different programs and services – is expected to have the largest-served beneficiary base at 110,000.

Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez, one of the principal organizers of the BPSF, thanked all the participating agencies and wished for the success of the ongoing serbisyo caravan in Bukidnon.

“Mapalad ang Bukidnon dahil isa po kayo sa mga piling lugar na napiling pagdausan ng pinakabagong programa ng ating gobyerno — ang Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair. May ilang probinsya na rin po ang nakaranas ng ginhawa na dala ng ating Serbisyo Fair pero masasabi ko po na itong Bukidnon ang isa sa pinakamaraming beneficiaries na napadalo,” Speaker Romualdez said at the opening of the BPSF in Bukidnon State University in Malaybalay.

“Maraming salamat po sa pagpunta ninyo ngayon. Nagpasasalamat din kami sa lahat ng opisyal ng gobyerno at mga ahensya na nakibahagi ngayon sa pagdadala ng serbisyo sa ating mamamayan,” he added.

Speaker Romualdez also came on behalf of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, whose challenge to bring government services to the people is the founding principle behind the BPSF.

“Para po sa kaalaman ng lahat, naisip namin na maglunsad ng ganitong proyekto bilang sagot sa hamon ni Pangulong Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos, Jr. na pabilisin ang paghahatid ng serbisyo ng gobyerno sa bawat Pilipino,” the lawmaker from Leyte expressed.

“Kasama ng Office of the Speaker sa proyektong ito ang buong kasapian ng House of Representatives kaagapay ang lahat ng departamento at ahensya ng gobyerno,” he continued.

Bukidnon Rep. Jonathan Keith Flores serves as the local host for the event, along with the crucial support of the provincial government of Bukidnon through Governor Neil Roque, in collaboration with the district representatives of Bukidnon: Reps. Jose Manuel F. Alba, Jose Maria R. Zubiri Jr. and Laarni Lavin Roque.

Also present during the event to support the program were Cagayan de Oro City Rep. Lordan Suan, Davao de Oro Rep. Maria Carmen Zamora, Davao del Norte Rep. Alan Dujali, and Davao Oriental Reps. Nelson Dayanghirang and Cheeno Almario.

Among the services offered is a province-wide payout in all 22 LGUs of the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which is expected to reach over 53,000 individuals amounting to P105 million in cash aid.

Other cash assistance programs include the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD) implemented by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), which will oversee payouts in 4th to 6th-class municipalities in Bukdinon.

“Bilang lider ng Kongreso, alam po namin na marami sa inyo ang nahihirapang makakuha ng mga serbisyong kailangan ng inyong mga pamilya. Sa Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair, layunin namin na hindi lamang mapadali, kundi mas mapalawak pa ang pagpapa-abot sa ninyo sa lahat ng serbisyong laan ng gobyerno,” Romualdez said.

“Sa bawat lugar na mapupuntahan ng Serbisyo Fair, asahan ninyong makakatanggap kayo ng ayuda, impormasyon, at gabay sa lahat ng problemang kinakaharap ninyo kaugnay sa kalusugan, edukasyon, hanapbuhay,at marami pang iba,” he stated.

The BPSF had been pilot-tested in Biliran and was simultaneously launched in Ilocos Norte, Camarines Sur, Leyte and Davao de Oro in September. Before Bukidnon, the last stop of the BPSF was in Laguna.

Speaker Romualdez said they hope to visit all 82 provinces for the serbisyo caravan, reaching a total of 2 million beneficiaries.

The beneficiaries in these provinces will have easy access to government projects and programs in the areas of social services; health and medical support; livelihood and educational assistance; services in regulatory functions; and other bureaucratic services aimed to capacitate and benefit them.

“Hinihikayat namin kayo na sabihan ang inyong mga kaibigan at mga mahal sa buhay na antabayan ang pagdating ng Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair sa kanilang lugar at samahan kami sa pagtutulungan para mapabuti ang kalagayan ng mamamayang PIlipino. Sama-sama, babangon po tayong muli,” Speaker Romualdez declared.

On the first night of the BPSF in Bukidnon, a Pasasalamat Concert that is expected to draw a crowd of 10,000 people will also be held at the Provincial Capitol Grounds with free admission.