CEBU CITY, PHILIPPINES — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. (PBBM) yesterday (Feb 26) led the inauguration and blessing of the Pag-Abot Processing Center (PPC) in Liloan town before proceeding to inspect the upgraded Visayas Disaster Resource Center (VDRC) in Mandaue City, underscoring his administration’s push to strengthen both social protection and disaster response systems.
Located in Sitio Kawayanan, Barangay Tayud, Liloan, the Pag-Abot Processing Center is a ₱17.99-million facility established by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Field Office 7 – Central Visayas.
The center is the third such facility in the region and is designed to provide comprehensive social protection services to children, individuals, and families in street situations while awaiting reintegration into their communities.
In Cebu province alone, more than 600 homeless individuals have been recorded by DSWD under the Pag-Abot Program, which was launched in 2023 and institutionalized in 2024 through Executive Order No. 52.
The program offers health services, food, clothing, psychosocial intervention, livelihood assistance, temporary shelter, and family reintegration support to help beneficiaries transition toward stable and dignified lives.
It also ensures their inclusion in the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) and other social protection initiatives in coordination with the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and local government units.
The Pag-Abot center can accommodate more than 120 individuals, with each beneficiary expected to stay for about a month pending reintegration.
President Marcos toured the facility’s clinic, profiling and biometrics area, clothing distribution section, kitchen and dining hall, laundry and storage rooms, administrative office, senior citizens’ room, isolation room, prayer and activity areas, and sleeping quarters for men, women, and families.
The second floor houses a child-minding area, multi-purpose room, lactation room, house parents’ quarters, and communal bathrooms.
DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian said the Liloan facility will primarily serve Cebu City, Mandaue City, and Talisay City to ensure the welfare of Families and Individuals in Street Situations (FISS).
Gatchalian emphasized that beneficiaries will be linked to long-term economic, educational, and livelihood programs to prevent them from returning to the streets.
Among those present during the inauguration were Tourism Secretary Christina Garcia Frasco, Cebu 5th District Rep. Duke Frasco, Liloan Mayor Aljew Frasco and Liloan Vice Mayor Margarita Frasco, along with representatives from partner agencies including PSA, DTI, DOLE, DOH, TESDA, DILG, PNP, DA, CHR, DepEd, and NHA.
President’s Mandaue visit
After the inauguration in Liloan, the President traveled to Barangay Tingub, Mandaue City to inspect the newly upgraded VDRC, where he witnessed the enhanced disaster response capability brought about by the completion of its Mechanized Production System (MPS).
The P117-million upgrade, funded through the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund and completed in July 2025, introduced five automatic vacuum packaging lines to modernize the production of Family Food Packs (FFPs).
The facility can now produce up to 30,000 food packs per eight-hour shift, tripling its previous manual capacity of 5,000 to 8,000 packs daily.
“Ito ang unang panahon na ang national government ay nagbibigay nitong klaseng food pack,” President Marcos said, noting that in the past, disaster victims often had to rely on various sources for aid. “Ngayon, nakakapag-provide na ang national government.”
The upgraded system uses machine-operated vacuum sealing to extend shelf life and ensure that food packs remain infestation-free and ready for long-term storage and prepositioning in disaster-prone areas.
The President said the VDRC currently has around four million food packs in storage and will continue production until it reaches over five million. Food packs nearing expiration are distributed free of charge to prevent wastage.
The Visayas hub complements operations at the Luzon Disaster Resource Center in Pasay City, while a permanent Mindanao Disaster Resource Center is planned in Butuan City. In the meantime, supplies for Mindanao will be sourced from the VDRC in Cebu.
The VDRC also supports programs such as Emergency Cash Transfer and Cash-for-Work and operates alongside 17 mobile kitchens and 16 mobile command centers nationwide to strengthen disaster coordination.
Marcos said the modernization of the VDRC aligns with his directive to ensure immediate and adequate delivery of assistance to families affected by calamities, particularly in disaster-prone regions like the Visayas.
By combining expanded social protection through the Pag-Abot Program and strengthened disaster logistics through the upgraded VDRC, the administration aims to provide faster aid, safer shelter, and more sustainable support systems for vulnerable Filipinos.
Joining the President at the VDRC, aside from the Frascos, are Mandaue City Mayor Jonkie Ouano, Mandaue City Lone District Representative Emmarie “Lolypop” Ouano Dizon and Cebu Province administrator and former Tourism Secretary Ace Durano.
| Written by Mitchelle Palaubsanon/RAE
