Robin Padilla leads relief distribution in drought-stricken ARMM town

MAGUINDANAO - Actor Robin Padilla on Thursday led a relief mission for drought-stricken peasant families in Maguindanao’s South Upi hinterland town, his second in two months.

 

The outreach mission capped off the launching on Thursday in the municipality of the multi-sectoral “All for Peace Movement,” a bloc of peace activists from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and other parts of the country aiming to help address the southern secessionist conflict.

 

The movement was established in Cotabato City more than two months ago with the help of ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman and his spouse, Anak Mindanao Partylist Rep. Sitti Djalia Turabin.

 

Padilla and volunteers from the Philippine Red Cross, led by Fatima Sinsuat, did not involve any elected local, provincial, or ARMM official in their relief operation to prevent being accused of electioneering.

 

RELATED: ARMM gov't taps Red Cross for relief ops in drought-stricken towns

 

Workers of the ARMM’s Humanitarian Emergency Assistance and Response Team (HEART) merely extended technical support to Padilla and his companions as they held a dialogue with South Upi residents and distributed food supplies to ethnic Teduray, Maguindanaon, and Visayan families.

 

South Upi is one of more than a dozen towns in Maguindanao badly affected by the drought which started in late November 2015.

 

All of the 36 towns in the province were placed under state of calamity by the provincial board to hasten the mitigation of problems now besetting peasants due to heavy crop losses caused by the dry spell.

 

At least 1,295 families from Barangay Romongaob, the capital of South Upi, benefited from Thursday’s relief mission, according to a matrix obtained from HEART volunteers.

 

The HEART had earlier distributed food supplies to South Upi residents as part of the ARMM government’s El-Niño mitigation initiatives.

 

“We must not lose hope. There are people out there ready to help. We just have to help one another in these difficult times,” Padilla told the beneficiaries of their relief mission in Filipino.

 

Padilla did not endorse any candidate for local, regional and national positions in his message in an impromptu program prior to the distribution of rice and other food supplies to drought-affected villagers.

 

He did not even urge local folks to support the candidacy of his long-time friend, Hataman, who is seeking a second term as ARMM governor, to ensure that their relief mission in South Upi would not be perceived as politically motivated.