Negrenses send relief goods to Taal victims

By Glazyl Y. Masculino

BACOLOD City – The Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (Nocppo) here and some volunteers of Negros Love Operation Love a Flow Organization gathered on Tuesday to send a truck of relief goods to the victims of Taal volcano eruption in Batangas province.

A send-off ceremony led by Police Colonel Romeo Baleros, Nocppo director, and the said organization led by Hinoba-an Councilor Jason Tupas, and Victorias City Councilor Derek Palanca was held at Nocppo headquarters in Camp Alfredo Montelibano Sr. here yesterday.

Baleros said that the provincial police was able to accumulate goods such as clothes, toiletries, toys for kids and other necessary items. Various government and non-government organizations also helped in the said cause.

Baleros, a native of Taal, Batangas thanked the benevolent volunteers in behalf of the affected people in Batangas.

Thousands of people in Batangas province were affected when the volcano erupted last January 12.

Baleros also said that portion of the rice allowance amounting to P650 of more than 1,900 Nocppo personnel will also be used to provide rice subsidy to the victims.

“We can contribute sacks of rice amounting to less than a million for the people of Batangas,” he added.

Meanwhile, Tupas, in his speech, said the initiative started as an effort by a group of individuals which eventually grown to an organized endeavor to aid the victims of the eruption.

Tupas and his group earlier provided 62,000 face masks to the victims, four days after the eruption happened there.

The relief goods are expected to arrive there the following day. It will be personally delivered by Tupas’s group.

“This shows that ordinary Negrenses came together in solidarity to help our countrymen,” he said.

Tupas said that help is already there. “We will go back there and make massive campaign for bigger operations to help our countrymen,” he added.