SPEAKER Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez and Tingog party-list group have helped more residents of Northern Luzon and even Central Luzon who have been affected by typhoon Egay.

As of noon Sunday, Speaker Romualdez, the head of the 312-strong House of Representatives, and Tingog party list have sent a total of P287 million in cash assistance, relief goods, generators and financial aid from the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development under Sec. Rex Gatchalian.

The Speaker and Tingog Reps. Yedda Marie K. Romualdez and Jude Acidre facilitated the release of the AICS funds. The cash assistance and relief goods came from the Speaker’s personal funds.

“We hope the relief and financial aid we sent to our kababayan in the typhoon-stricken areas will help them recover from the calamity. It represents our commitment to assist our people in distress to the best extent we can,” the House leader said.

In an interview with Isyung Pambayan over dzRH, Deputy Secretary General Sofonias “Ponyong” P. Gabonada Jr. of the Office of Speaker said Speaker Romualdez and Tingog Party-list will always be the partners of the Marcos administration in providing immediate assistance during calamities.

“Nakapaghatid na tayo ng tulong at patuloy tayong naghahatid ng tulong sa ibat-ibang mga distrito at probinsiyang nasalanta katulad ng Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Cagayan Valley, Benguet, Baguio City, Abra, Apayao, at Malolos City sa Bulacan.

Nagsimula po tayo a day after tumama ang bagyo doon sa mga lugar na nasalanta ng bagyong Egay at malugod po nating ibinabalita na isa po tayo sa unang nagresponde, ang opisina ni Speaker Martin G. Romualdez at Tingog Party-list na may partnership sa private sector o groceries kung saan natin binili at binibili ang goods,” Gabonada said.

“Ang sinabi ni Speaker agad-agad maihatid ang tulong so hindi na po tayo nagre-repack sa atin, naghahanap tayo ng partners on the ground para makatulong at maka-provide,” Gabonada said.

“Ang lider ng House of Representatives, si Speaker Martin Romualdez, nais niyang maging ligtas ang lahat at nandiyan lang po ang gobyerno natin, ang administrasyon ni Pangulong Bongbong Marcos para matugunan ang pangangailangan ng ating mga mamamayan, sama-sama po tayong babangon muli,” Gabonanda added.

On Friday, Speaker Romualdez travelled to Baguio City to join officials in distributing aid to residents of the city and Benguet province.

Since then, additional distressed households in Abra, Apayao, Benguet, Ilocos Norte, Ilocos Sur, Cagayan, Apayao, Pangasinan, Pampanga, and Malolos City in Bulacan have been provided assistance.

The Speaker told Benguet and Baguio residents that he shared the pain and suffering they were going through because that’s what he felt when super typhoon Yolanda caused widespread devastation and deaths in Leyte and other parts of Eastern Visayas in 2013.

Despite the bad weather, he said he traveled to Baguio to heed the plea of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. for officials to ensure that aid reaches typhoon-stricken communities.

“Nagpasya ako na pumunta ngayon dito sa utos na rin ng ating mahal na Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Kadarating lang po namin mula sa Malaysia kagabi. Ang utos ng Pangulo: siguruhin na nakakarating ang tulong ng gobyerno sa lahat ng naapektuhan ng Bagyong Egay,” he said. The President himself handed out financial aid and relief goods to residents of northern Luzon provinces over the weekend.