PCOO PR
METRO MANILA – Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Martin Andanar is supporting the initiative of providing opportunities in provinces through the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa (BP2) Program.
The series of weekday Network Briefing News episodes has highlighted the vast agricultural lands in provinces that can be tapped by local governments in providing livelihood opportunities for its residents and BP2 beneficiaries.
In its latest episode, Secretary Andanar expressed his interest to visit the municipality of Magsaysay, Davao del Sur soon and create promotional materials that will showcase the municipality’s assets and resources.
“Nawa’y makarating sa inyo sa Magsaysay sa Davao del Sur para makuhanan po natin ng magagandang video footage, mga litrato para matulungan natin sa pag-promote dito po sa ating national government at maging sa national media ang mga lupain, at pananim diyan po [We hope that we can go to Magsaysay in Davao del Sur, so we can get video footages, take photos so we can promote through the national government and the national media the lands and the agriculture there],” he said.
On weekends, the PCOO chief visits areas outside Metro Manila to identify resources that provinces can offer to returning residents. With this, the identified province can help navigate the directions of the national government on which sectors they should invest on and provide assistance.
Recently, he visited Lucena City in Quezon Province where he inspected the ongoing port expansion and rehabilitation of the Lucena Fish Port Complex (LFPC).
Other provinces that Secretary Andanar has already visited are Benguet, Nueva Ecija, and Batangas.
The BP2 program seeks to create equal economic development and employment opportunities across regions in the country to empower local businesses, boost food security and agricultural productivity, and enable further infrastructure development in rural areas.
As of now, the said program of the government has been temporarily suspended to pave way for the safe return of locally stranded individuals and overseas Filipino workers through the Hatid Tulong program. However, enrollment and evaluation of enrollees of the program are continuous.
A father ready to serve and protect
In the same Network Briefing News episode, Secretary Andanar also paid tribute to all the fathers who he noted are among the unsung heroes who are valuable assets in the community.
He said that Filipinos are lucky to have a father in the person of President Rodrigo Duterte, who is ready to serve and protect the people.
“Mapalad nga naman tayong Pilipino na may isang simpleng probinsyano na handang magserbisyo at handang magpakamatay para sa kanyang sinasakupan, na kung tutuusin ay hindi naman niya kaano-ano [We are lucky that we a simple man who hails from the province, who is ready to serve and die for us, though we are not related to him by blood],” he said.
“At dahil sa malaking pagmamahal niya sa bansa at sa sinasakupan nito, siya ay nagpaka-ama sa atin. Siya ang dakilang ama ng ating bayan, ang ating Pangulong Rodrigo Roa Duterte. Tunay na matibay na haligi ng ating bansa, lalo na sa panahong ito [And because of his great love for the country and its people, he stands as the father of our nation. He is our noble father, our President Rodrigo Roa Duterte, a strong pillar of our country, especially during these trying times],” Secretary Andanar added.
