THE residents of a far-flung village in Polanco, Zamboanga del Norte, benefitted from the Medical Outreach Caravan initiated by the Army’s 97th Infantry Battalion (IB) together with the Municipal Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (MTF-Elcac).

Polanco Mayor Evan Hope Olvis said the recipients of the outreach caravan held last week were the residents of Lapayanbaja.

Olvis said a total of 300 packs of relief goods composed of groceries and five kilos of rice were distributed to the residents in the village.

Frances Bantelante, rural health officer of Polanco, said 37 children were circumcised, 53 were vaccinated with Sinovac, 20 with an anti-flu vaccine, and around 60 others availed free medical consultation.

During the activity, the troops of 97IB provided security and manpower assistance during the whole duration of the program while health protocol was implemented.

Olvis said also part of the caravan was the turn-over of the newly constructed building for the senior citizens in Lapayanbaja village.

“Through MTF-Elcac, issues and concerns of the barangays located in the far-flung areas will easily be responded to by the different agencies,” he said.

The residents expressed their gratitude for the support of the government by bringing basic services closer to them and by addressing their concerns for the continuous improvement of their village. (SunStar Zamboanga)