President Marcos has vowed to go around the Philippines to personally assess the impact of El Niño and give assistance to affected areas.
In his speech during the distribution of assistance in Barangay Tetuan, Zamboanga City on Thursday, May 9, Marcos said that Malacañang will reach out to them, not the other way around.
"Hindi ang lokal na pamahalaan ang dudulog sa Malacañang (It is not the local government that would be reaching out to Malacañang)," he said.
"Ang Malacañang ang pupunta sa mamamayan (Malacañang will be reaching out to the people)," he added.
The President stated this as he promised to bring assistance to more places after Zamboanga, adding that all regions will be visited by him.
No region will be left behind, he further said.
"Hindi lamang Zamboanga ang hahatiran natin ng tulong kung hindi lahat ng rehiyon ay aking dadalawin. Buong bansa ang tatamasa ng mga programa na ating ipinagkakaloob (Zamboanga won't be the only one to receive help, I will visit all regions. The whole country will benefit from the programs of the government)," Marcos vowed.
"Lalarga tayo sa buong kapuluan. Walang rehiyon na maiiwanan, walang lalawigan na makakaligtaan (We will visit the entire archipelago. No region, no province will be left behind)," he further promised.
Marcos said Filipinos affected by drought have already reached to 3.6 million individuals while losses to sources of income by farmers and fishermen has already reached P5.9 billion since the occurrence of the El Niño phenomenon.
In Zamboanga Peninsula alone, the President noted 3,000 hectares of farmlands were adversely affected.
The Chief Executive was led the handing over of assistance which covers financial aid amounting to P10,000 for beneficiaries from Region 9.
He also gave monetary support totaling around P58 million to Zamboanga City and the provinces of Zamboanga del Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, and Zamboanga Sibugay.