Lopez firm pledges P100 million for workers displaced by virus

MANILA, Philippines — Lopez-led First Philippine Holdings Corp. (FPH) has committed to  help  for poor families whose work and means of livelihood are affected by the government’s implementation of community quarantine to prevent the rapid spread of   coronavirus disease 2019 or  COVID-19, starting with a P100-million seed fund through sister firm ABS-CBN Corp.

FPH said it has pledged P100 million as seed fund that allowed the immediate launch of ABS-CBN Corp.’s “Pantawid ng Pag-Ibig” project.

The project is a campaign coordinated with local government units (LGUs) to provide indigents with food and other necessities in the midst of  enhanced community quarantine.

ABS-CBN’s Pantawid ng Pag-Ibig project is raising funds from private companies and individuals, which the network uses to buy food items and other essentials for repacking and distribution to individual families and households in poor communities, whose residents are affected by quarantine restrictions.

Under the Pantawid campaign, ABS-CBN coordinates with the LGUs in distributing the food packages. By bringing food bags to the needy households, Pantawid at the same time helps prevent the spread of COVID-19 because it encourages the indigents to stay home. These families need not go to their barangay centers or to ABS-CBN to get their needs.

FPH has subsidiaries with operations in other parts of the country. These include First Gen Corp., the country’s largest clean and renewable energy producer, whose power plants are located in the provinces. ABS-CBN also has its own broadcast stations in the provinces.

Meanwhile, personnel of FPH subsidiaries in the provinces are ready to coordinate with LGUs in the provinces so the FPH subsidiaries can help poor families living both in host and nearby communities affected also by the virus.