Project Ugnayan umayuda sa 7.6-M mahihirap

UMABOT na sa 7.6 milyon ang naging benepisaryo o naayudahang mahihirap na pamilya ng Project Ugnayan, isang inisyatibong fund-raising na itinatag ng mga kilalang business groups sa kooperasyon ng  Philippine Disaster Resilience Foundation (PDRF) upang makatulong sa gobyerno sa COVID-19 crisis sa bansa.

“As we close, we wish to reiterate our wholehearted thanks to all our generous donors for making this project possible. By coming together in a Bayanihan spirit so quickly, we were able to create a program of this scale and importance. This unprecedented assembly of so many of the country’s corporations and business families coming to the assistance of the most vulnerable in our society illustrates and speaks of the heart and generosity of the business community,” ayon kay PDRF Co-Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.

“Our special thanks go to the 10 Bishops of the Dioceses in Metro Manila, Rizal, Bulacan, Cavite, and Laguna, as well as to Caritas Manila under the leadership of Father Anton Pascual, and the network of parish priests, volunteers, and barangay captains who distributed the gift certificates door-to-door in the lowest-income communities of Greater Metro Manila. We appreciate the swiftness and efficiency of their work under very difficult conditions and over very long hours each day,” ayon kay Project Ugnayan initiator Fernando Zobel de Ayala.

“We are grateful for this opportunity to be part of this business community effort to help people in a time of crisis. This is a movement we should nurture as we prepare to let people return to work and to re-start our economy in the post-quarantine period,” dagdag ni Zobel de Ayala.

“The unity in diversity demonstrated by Project Ugnayan reveals the private sector’s serious commitment to help our country recover from the lost economic momentum ecause of the pandemic. We are proud to be part of this extraordinary collaboration of industries which will prove most valuable in getting the economy back on track,” pahayag naman ni PDRF Co-Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan.

Ayon  kay Father Anton CT Pascual, Executive Director ng  Caritas Manila, ang ginawang inisyatibo ng grupo upang makatulong sa mahihirap na pamilya ay umani ng papuri at lubos na pasasalamat mula kina  Archdiocese ng Manila Apostolic Administrator Bishop Broderick Pabillo, San Pablo Bishop Buenaventura Famadico at iba pang ‘Prelates’ ng Suffragan Dioceses ng Manila.

“The true spirit of Easter is about hope and has special significance in these difficult times. We thank all the generous benefactors of Project Ugnayan for this opportunity to fulfill a great mission of compassion for our vulnerable brothers and sisters. Your gifts have warmed their hearts and uplifted their spirits,” pahayag ni Father Pascual.

Ang Project Damayan ng Caritas Manila, ang pangunahing distributor emergency cash sa pamamagitan ng P1,000 supermarket gift certificates ay nakapamahagi na sa 1,070,854 pamilya o 5,354,270 indibiduwal.

Patuloy na lumalarga ang paghahatid ng gift certificates sa 1,366,495 pamilya o 6,832,475 indibiduwal hanggang sa Miyerkoles, 15 Abril (ang orihinal na petsang magtatapos ang enhanced community quarantine bago ito palawigin).

“In sum, Project Ugnayan and its Partners have reached 1,522,569 families or 7,612,845 people in just over three weeks. This number will rise as all deliveries have already been programmed by the partners,” dagdag ni Zobel de Ayala.

Ilan sa donors ng Project Ugnayan ang Aboitiz Group, ABSCBN/First Gen, Alaska Milk Corporation, Alliance Global Group & Megaworld, AY Foundation & RCBC, Ayala Corporation, Bench/Suyen Corp, Bonifacio West Dev’t Corp., Carmelray Group, Cathay Land, Inc., Cebuana Lhullier, Century Pacific, Coca Cola Philippines, Concepcion Industrial, Consuelo “Chito” Madrigal Foundation, Inc., Daiichi Properties, DMCI Group of Companies, Dowell Container and Packaging Corporation, Far Eastern University, First Life Financial Company, Focus Global, Inc., at Global Food Group.

Kabilang din sa mga donors ang Glorious Commercial Exports, Inc., Gokongwei Group of Companies/Robinsons Retail Holdings, ICTSI, JAKA Group 1, Jollibee, J.P. Morgan, Kawit Prime Holdings, Inc., Leonio Group, Mercury Drug Corporation, Metrobank, Mumuso Group, National Grid Corp of the Philippines, New World Hotel, Nutri-Asia, Oishi/Liwayway Marketing Group, One Meralco Foundation, Penshoppe, People R People, PepsiCo/PepsiCo Foundation, Philippine Racing Club, Inc., PLDT/Metro Pacific Investments Corporation, Puregold, Ramon S. Ang & Family, RRK/Lee Jeans, Shang Properties Inc., SM/BDO, Sta.  Elena Construction, Sugar Junction, Inc., Sunlife of Canada, Super Prime Holdings, Inc., Supreme Steel Pipe Corp, The Alpha Suites Inc., Unilab, at Wilcon Depot.