House Speaker Martin Romualdez during the opening program of the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) at the Benguet State University, in La Trinidad, Benguet (Speaker's Office).

House Speaker Martin Romualdez led the roll-out of P412 million in cash aid as well as various government service programs in La Trinidad, Benguet on Sunday, April 21, during the launch of the Bagong Pilipinas Serbisyo Fair (BPSF) in the province.

True to the promise of President Marcos to bring the government closer to the people, Romualdez accompanied a total of 70 participating national government agencies in delivering over 326 services to the people of Benguet.

“Sa serbisyo fair na ito, kusa pong lumapit sa inyo ang iba’t ibang sangay ng pamahalaan upang maghatid ng tulong na inyong kailangan tungo sa ating sama-samang pag-unlad,” Romualdez told the attendees at the Benguet State University.

(In this service fair, various branches of the government voluntarily come to you to deliver the help you need toward our collective progress.)

“Ang mensahe po na pinaabot namin sa inyo ngayong araw: kahit bundok po aakyatin, para masigurado na wala pong maiiwan sa pagtataguyod natin ng Bagong Pilipinas,” he added.

(This is the message we are sending to you today: we will scale a mountain just to make sure that nobody gets left behind in establishing the New Philippines. )

The two-day BPSF in Benguet is the 15th installment of the all-encompassing service caravan, which aims to cover all 82 provinces of the country.

Benguet is also the first province in the Cordillera Autonomous Region (CAR) to be visited by the program.

Approximately 80,000 beneficiaries are set to benefit from the program, which includes the distribution of some P261 million in financial aid.

Among the services offered was the payout of the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) under the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to all 13 municipalities in Benguet, including the city of Baguio. About 50,000 beneficiaries are expected to receive financial assistance amounting to P100 million.

Coinciding with the BPSF, Romualdez also led the distribution of aid under the Cash and Rice Distribution (CARD) Program, the Integrated Scholarships and Incentives Program (ISIP) for the Youth, and the Start-up, Investment, Business Opportunity and Livelihood (SIBOL).

True to the Speaker’s “Mr. Rice” moniker, the CARD program saw the distribution of P2,000 under AICS and 25 kilograms of premium rice to 3,000 beneficiaries.

For the ISIP for the Youth, 2,000 struggling tertiary and vocational students in Benguet will receive P2,000 in financial aid every six months to cover tuition and other expenses.

The SIBOL program, an initiative of Romualdez that aims to encourage start-up businesses, bestowed a total of P15 million worth of financial assistance to 3,000 beneficiaries

“Your smiles, as you receive the assistance that the government extends, make the job that we do worthwhile and encourage us in the House of Representatives to think of new and better ways to help each and every Filipino realize his full potential,” the House leader said.

“Umasa po kayo na kami po na inyong mga kinatawan, baon ang inyong mga ngiti ngayong araw, ay hindi titigil at lalo pang magta-trabaho upang ang pangako ng pagkakaisa at pambansang kaunlaran ay ating makamit sa mas mabilis na panahon,” he further said.

(You can rely on us, we who are your representatives, with all your smiles today, that will not stop and will work even harder so that we can achieve faster the promise of unity and national development.)

The Benguet leg of the BPSF was attended by 63 members of the House of Representatives.

This is the highest recorded attendance of lawmakers in the service caravan, edging out the Agusan del Norte leg of the BPSF, which drew the attendance of 62 solons.