Marcos Admin Allocates P154M Aid to 770 Cavite Barangays

MANILA, Philippines — The Marcos administration has released P154 million directly to 770 barangays in Cavite to help fund public safety and development needs, and for graduating college students to earn their degrees. In a statement on Sunday, Executive Secretary Ralph Recto said P77 million would go to 3,850 incoming fourth-year college students in Cavite, with each receiving P20,000. Another P77 million would fund projects such as solar streetlights, emergency and patrol equipment, and disaster preparedness gear in the province. Recto led the distribution of the funds to barangay officials in Cavite on Sept. 11 under the administration’s “Bawat Barangay Makikinabang” program. Each barangay received P100,000 for education assistance through the Bagong Pilipinas Barangay Scholars Program. The amount will be divided among five fourth-year college students, with each receiving P20,000. Another P100,000 per barangay was provided for community development and public safety projects. The P6.6 million assistance for the 33 barangays of General Trias was handed over by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. during his visit to the municipality in May. The funding comes from the Socio-Civic Projects Fund (SCPF), administered by the Office of the Executive Secretary under the Office of the President, to provide a rapid, immediate response to community needs and to continuously implement development projects. Recto said the President wants the program to help students complete their college education, which he described as key to lifting families out of poverty. “President Marcos believes that education is the key for a family, as well as a country, to rise out of poverty. That is why he wants every barangay to have college graduates,” he added. He also told barangay officials that the funds were being entrusted directly to them because they were in the best position to identify their communities’ needs. Recto also reminded local officials to ensure transparency and accountability in using the allocations. The distribution was witnessed by key provincial and congressional leaders of Cavite, including Governor Abeng Remulla, Vice Governor Ram Revilla, 1st District Representative Ramon “Jolo” Revilla III, 2nd District Representative Lani Mercado-Revilla, 5th District Representative Roy M. Loyola, 7th District Representative Crispin Diego Remulla and Agimat Partylist Representative Bryan Revilla. Also present to receive and support the provincial rollout were municipal and city mayors from across Cavite, including Carmona Mayor Dahlia Loyola, as well as Barangay Captains and Liga ng mga Barangay President Rafael Paterno III of Bacoor City.