THE Pampanga Chamber of Commerce and Industry Inc. (PamCham), the largest business chamber in Central Luzon, has encouraged all its members to reach out and help earthquake victims in Mindanao.
PamCham president Renato G. Romero said the people of Central Luzon should extend all-out aid to the municipalities and cities gravely affected from the earthquake.
"This is a time for us to exercise our vows with our sister chambers in Mindanao. In crucial situations such as disasters and crises, we will definitely take concrete actions to help and sympathize," he said.
The 600-strong chamber, which is composed of various businesses from different industries, encouraged all its members to donate monetary assistance that will be collected together for turnover to Mindanao authorities.
"We specifically asked for cash donations because of the urgency of the situation. Our sister chambers in GenSan (General Santos) and Cotabato responded positively. We will course through the donations to them and they will be in charge of the distribution of relief goods and other necessities," Romero said.
Last week, several earthquakes with magnitude 6 rocked the province of Cotabato, Davao City and other areas in Davao and Soccsksargen.
Many residents were terrorized and traumatized, while over 30,045 people were affected in 72 barangays or villages, according to authorities.
The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) also reported a total of 15 deaths, 610 injured and two missing persons after the earthquakes, but succeeding aftershocks still create panic and fear among the residents.
"Many were displaced from the evacuation centers. The others opted to stay outdoors in tents. And this is truly sad. The least that we can do is to provide immediate financial assistance to them," Romero said.
He said PamCham will continue to coordinate and communicate with its sister chambers in Mindanao if only to provide a substantial assistance to the region. (Minerva Zamora-Arceo/Contributor)