BAGANGA, DAVAO ORIENTAL — Governor Nelson Dayanghirang has urged residents of far-flung sitios to avail of their free COVID-19 jabs as he talked with them during the latest conduct of the Nagkakaisang Lingkod-Bayan ng Davao Oriental-Barangay Outreach Caravan.

Aside from providing free goods and services, the recent wave of NLD-BOC became a venue for the health frontliners to encourage the residents to take part in the vaccination against COVID-19 pandemic.

The Governor assured that there is nothing to fear as the vaccine aims to protect and not harm people.

He expressed his delight that the number of COVID-positive has dropped massively in the continued efforts of the province, especially the health frontliners. However, he also relayed his concern about the vaccination as the number of vaccinated people is still far from the 70% target for herd immunity.

“The government will never put your lives at risk. We even borrowed money to finance the vaccination roll out. That only means we want you to be safe. According to studies, 99% of those who died due to COVID-19 virus have not been vaccinated. We need the vaccine to serve as our added layer of protection, so we can all go out freely, and slowly transition back to normalcy,” Governor Dayanghirang added.

FREE GOODS AND SERVICES

Aside from the information drive, the NLD-BOC also provided various goods and services. A total of 370 families in the eight sitios of Barangay Batawan in Baganga town benefited from the delivery of services. Several agencies and offices converged in Barangay Batawan to give much-needed social services, dental and medical services, economic and livelihood services to the residents of the eight sitios namely: Mahayahay, Lumbia, Bangag, Palo 11, Sampad, Tubigan, Lahi, and Tambis.

Under Alert Level 2, additional national and provincial agencies were granted to join such as the PhilHealth, Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and Environment and Natural Resources who were not able to attend during the previous conduct of NLD-BOC due to the high number of COVID-19 cases.

The Municipal Health Office of Baganga, in coordination with the Provincial Capitol Clinic and Provincial Health Office, offered free medical check-up, and gave free medicines. The 701st Brigade of the Philippine Army conducted “Operation Tuli” to young boys, while free haircut service and hot meals distribution were offered by the Philippine National Police.

The Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) delivered social services to senior citizens, donated assistive devices such as walkers and wheelchairs for persons with disability, gave away sports equipment for the youth, hygiene kit and food packs for each household.

To assist the people in their primary source of living, the Provincial Agriculture Office and the Environment and Natural Resources Office (ENRO) distributed seedlings, falcatta seeds and other farm inputs to the farmers. The Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO) conducted advocacy campaign on disaster preparedness and precautionary measures against COVID-19 pandemic, and gave away free calendars, emergency bells, and first-aid kits.

PhilHealth issued Member Data Records (MDR) to the residents; while the Provincial Veterinarian’s Office offered free vitamins, medicines and antibiotics for pets and livestock.

Beyond just delivering services, the NLD-SOC was also a way of the government to encourage the residents to take part in the race for peace and end communism by educating them of the importance of eliminating the breeding ground of the insurgents in their sitios.

Provincial Director of the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Orle Cabaobao delivered the good news to the residents of Barangay Batawan as it qualified to receive the 20 million peso-budget honored to insurgency-free barangays, under the Barangay Development Program (BDP). He also commended the commitment of the residents and barangay officials alike in maintaining the peace and order situation of their community.

While the 2022 election is nearing, the provincial government of Davao Oriental is aiming to reach many more communities, before Governor Dayanghirang leaves his post, to ensure that no community is left behind when it comes to the delivery of basic services.

To date, NLD-BOC has already reached 157 barangays. | By Shaye Dacles