MPT South Donates Tents, Medicine to Host Communities
In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, Metro Pacific Tollways South Management Corporation (“MPT South”), a unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (MPTC), continues to support host communities along the CAVITEX and CALAX through donations of medicine and open tents for livelihood programs.
MEDICINE DONATION
On June 4, 2020, Barangay Pulang Lupa Uno, Las Pinas, one of the host communities of CAVITEX, received boxes of vitamins and over-the-counter drugs to help in the prevention of common flu-like symptoms.
Identified as one of the densely populated barangays in Las Pinas with over 8,000 households, Brgy. Pulang Lupa Uno was where MPT South initially planned to conduct its annual free medical and dental check-up, together with its partner hospitals and pharmaceutical companies. But due to the pandemic, the program was modified into a medicine donation to observe social distancing protocols.
Infant and adult vitamins, pain relievers, and common cold, cough and flu medicines were personally received by Barangay Captain Guadalupe Rosales, who extended her utmost gratitude on behalf of her constituents. “Ang mga naibigay na gamot at vitamins ng Cavitex ay malaking karagdagang tulong sa aming mga ka-barangay, lalo na’t nasa gitna tayo ng laban sa pagsugpo ng Covid-19. Bagamat nakakalungkot na hindi natuloy ang naunang naplanong medical mission, masaya pa rin ang Barangay Pulang Lupa Uno dahil hindi kami nalilimutan ng Cavitex sa mga ganitong klaseng programa (The medicines provided by Cavitex are an additional help to our barangay, especially now that we are amid the fight to end Covid-19. Though we are saddened by the postponement of the initially planned Medical Mission, we at Barangay Pulang Lupa Uno are still delighted that Cavitex always includes us in these kinds of program),”said Brgy. Capt. Rosales.
LIVELIHOOD TENT DONATION
In a community that hardly depends on tourism as source of income, the implementation of the Community Quarantine in Luzon gravely impeded livelihood opportunities for the residents of Barangay Carmen, Silang, especially this summer season.
Popular to tourists for its refreshing and “healing” water, the once tourist-filled Malindig River, or “Bukal”, was bereft of tourists when Luzon was placed under community quarantine due to Covid 10. Residents who were benefiting from this tourist site now seek alternative sources of income while their area is still under community quarantine.
MPT South donated five (5) open tents to this host community to help the barangay in teaching livelihood programs and activities, such as processing of their harvested crops and preparing easy-to-make snacks and drinks.
“Halos lahat ng aming pinagkakagastusan tuwing pista ng aming barangay ay diyan po namin kinukuha. Ngayon pong apektado ang aming bukal, halos wala po kaming kinita ngayong taon na ito. Kaya nagpapasalamat kami sa pamunuan ng CALAX na binigyan nila kami ng mga tent bilang suporta sa mga nakaplanong livelihood program sa aming mga ka-barangay na nawalang ng trabaho at umaasa sa turismo (Almost all of our expenses during our barangay fiesta are from the earnings gained from tourism. Now that our Malindig River / Bukal Tourism is affected by the Pandemic, our revenues are down for this year. That’s why we extend our gratitude to the CALAX for providing us these tents as support to our livelihood programs for our ka-barangays affected by this crisis”), said by Brgy. Capt. Rizaldy Malustre, during the turnover of the tents last June 11.
“MPT South is always ready to give a helping hand to our host communities along CAVITEX, CAVITEX C5 LINK, AND CALAX. We know that this pandemic has brought us challenges, be it in health or socio-economic aspects. We will not stop supporting our ka-barangays and giving the message that we are all in this together. Indeed, we will heal as one, and we will all recover as one,” said MPT South Assistant Vice President for Communication and Stakeholder Management, Ms. Arlette V. Capistrano.
Protocols and measures, such as social distancing and the use of basic PPEs, were strictly followed by MPT South volunteers during the handover of the medicines and tents to the barangay officials.
Earlier, MPT South donated food, which include rice, canned goods and instant noodles to barangays straddling the CAVITEX, CAVITEX C5 LINK and CALAX network, and under the jurisdiction of the LGUs of Paranaque City, Pasay City, Taguig City, Las Pinas City, and several LGUs in Cavite and Laguna provinces.
In compliance with Republic Act No. 11469, or the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act” and guidelines set by the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID) guidelines), MPT South expressways, CAVITEX and CALAX, have remained open despite the pandemic to help ensure unhampered movement of essential goods and services.
MPT South is a unit of Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation (“MPTC”), the toll road arm of the MVP group, with a domestic portfolio that includes the concessions for the Cavite Expressway (“CAVITEX”), Cavite-Laguna Expressway (“CALAX”), North Luzon Expressway (“NLEX”), the NLEX Connector Road, the Subic-Clark-Tarlac Expressway (“SCTEX”) and the Cebu-Cordova Link Expressway (“CCLEX”) in Cebu.