More than 100,000 bottles of drinking water intended for typhoon-hit communities in the country were donated by the Chinese government on Wednesday, Dec. 29.
The Chinese Embassy in Manila handed over the donation amounting to P1 million to the Office of Civil Defense (OCD). It is slated for immediate delivery to the affected communities of the deadly typhoon, the embassy said.
According to the embassy, the initiative is a response to the "urgent call for much-needed drinking water in the communities stricken by typhoon Odette."
It was disclosed that the Chinese Embassy and the OCD discussed the necessary groundwork for the donations to reach those affected, as well as the "possible opportunity of donating water purifiers in the near future."
Political Counselor Zhou Yong and Yang Zilong, of the Philippine Fuzhou General Chamber of Commerce, represented Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian during the turnover ceremony. The donation was received by Defense Undersecretary Cesar Yano and OCD Operations Service Director Bernardo Rafaelito Alejandro IV.
Huang, in a statement said, that he hopes "those water bottles amounting to P1 million will be immediately delivered to those affected.
Rest assured, we shall continue to extend assistance to our Filipino friends."
On Tuesday, Dec. 28, the Chinese Embassy also turned over 1,500 tons of rice donated by the Chinese government to the Visayas Disaster Resource Center (VDRC) in Upper Tabok, Mandaue City.
On Dec. 21, days after the onslaught of typhoon Odette, the Chinese Embassy sent 20,000 food packages worth around P8 million. Each package contains 5 kilograms of rice, 10 canned food and 10 noodle packs.
The Chinese government also pledged on Dec. 22 that it will provide P50-million emergency cash assistance to the Philippines "to help the government and people in the typhoon Odette-affected areas overcome the disaster and rebuild their homes at an early date."
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