Manila realigns P611-million infra budget to food, financial assistance

Mara Cepeda

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Manila realigns P611-million infra budget to food, financial assistance
'Dahil tulad po ng aking pangako ko sa inyo, uunahin po muna ang bituka, bago ang kalsada,' says Manila Mayor Isko Moreno

MANILA, Philippines – The Manila City government realigned P611 million of its budget originally set for infrastructure to fund its financial assistance and food subsidies for over 600,000 residents. 

Mayor Isko Moreno said that the local government decided to reallocate P611 million for cash aid, food packs, and rice subsidies of Manileños who continue to be affected by the lockdown imposed over Luzon island due to the coronavirus disease.

“Humigit-kumulang P611 milyon na nakatakda sana para sa infrastructure projects ay ating ni-realign at ginastos na natin para sa food at non-food assistance para sa bawat Manileño upang ibsan ang epekto ng krisis na dulot ng COVID-19,” Moreno said in a Facebook post on Friday, April 24.

(We realigned about P611 million that was originally allocated for instrastructure projects and used it instead for food and non-food assistance for every Manileño to help alleviate the effect of the COVID-19 crisis.)

“Dahil tulad po ng aking pangako ko sa inyo, uunahin po muna ang bituka, bago ang kalsada,” he added. 

(As I promised you before, I will prioritize food over roads.)

 

Moreno and other city officials previously donated their combined April salaries worth P4.7 million to the Philippine General Hospital, one of the referral hospitals for COVID-19 patients in the country.  

As of Saturday, April 25, COVID-19 has infected 7,294 people in the country, 494 of which were fatal. Still, 792 patients have already recovered from the disease. 

The Department of Health (DOH) tracker showed 536 people in Manila acquired COVID-19, 364 of whom remain admitted in hospitals in the city. The DOH recorded 39 deaths in the nation’s capital due to COVID-19, while 63 cases have recovered. – Rappler.com

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Mara Cepeda

Mara Cepeda specializes in stories about politics and local governance. She covers the Office of the Vice President, the Senate, and the Philippine opposition. She is a 2021 fellow of the Asia Journalism Fellowship and the Reham al-Farra Memorial Journalism Fellowship of the UN. Got tips? Email her at mara.cepeda@rappler.com or tweet @maracepeda.