DAVAO CITY (September 21)— When people hear about military operations -war immediately comes into their minds.
Soldiers carrying guns and canons. traveling with truckloads of war provisions.
But when their Commander-In-Chief ordered them to help in the rescue and rehabilitation of the people hit by Typhoon Ompong-the guns they used to carry turned goods-the truckloads of their provisions turned food for their countrymen.
The recent disaster has shown the other side of the Army in the country.
During the post Ompong operations, the soldiers showed they are not only combatants, they too can extend a helping hand.
This is the message that the Philippine Army wants to share to the people, when they drove their way from Davao City to Cagayan Valley to deliver six trucks loaded with food and other relief goods to Northern Luzon, on Monday September 17. While some of them helped in the rescue operations.
The six trucks carrying 822 sacks of rice for the families affected by Typhoon Ompong left Davao City with one purpose-to deliver the goods.
The Philippine Army Facebook page posted “Despite of unfavorable weather condition and terrain, the troops painstakingly transported the goods intended to the affected populace. This humanitarian effort is in support to the national government initiative spearheaded by no less than President Rodrigo R. Duterte for cohesive disaster response.”
It added, that the Army exerted all efforts in close coordination with local agencies to save lives and properties.
Given its mandate, Army Spokesperson Lt. Col. Louie Villanueva said, the Army extend humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations to cushion the impact of disaster among people.
Lieutenant General Rolando Joselito D. Bautista, the Commanding General of the Army stressed ” In this challenging times, we need to rebuild the hope and aspiration of our citizen by working together as a community to achieve our common goal with our unique Filipino culture of bayanihan.”
Bautista added “As soldiers, though our competency is war-fighting, we are still human and have the compassion to help and extend our capacity to our people. We find it most rewarding when we see our constituents being alleviated by our effort”, Bautista added. –Editha Z. Caduaya/NewsLine.ph
