“My words are not enough to express my gratitude to Governor Imee Marcos for giving me this most valuable present I have ever received in my entire life,” teary-eyed Ermelina Asuncion said after receiving a wheelchair from the Provincial Government of Ilocos Norte (PGIN).
Through the Social Welfare and Development Office, PGIN gives wheelchairs to indigent Ilocanos from different towns and cities who are in need of medical assistance.
Asuncion sought help from PGIN and requested for a wheelchair during the previous visit of Manang Imee’s Capitol Express in their town. When she finally had her request, she couldn’t contain her happiness.
Asuncion, 65 years old and a resident of Barangay 6, San Nicolas, Ilocos Norte, had her one leg amputated few years ago due to diabetes.
She shared that she always had a very hard time doing things alone. According to her, she always struggles pushing a monobloc chair in order to walk.
“Life is so hard for us and I have no choice because my husband and children have to leave me alone for their work,” she said in Ilocano.
Noting that they never had enough money to buy a wheelchair, she thanked the provincial government and Governor Marcos for their unending assistance to disadvantaged people like her.
By having the wheelchair, she will not have to struggle doing house chores anymore, she further added.
“This is a very big help as it brings new hope for me to continue appreciating life,” she concluded.
Manang Imee’s Capitol Express, which was launched by PGIN on July 2013 in Banna, Ilocos Norte, is a roving one-stop shop which offers free medical and dental services, consultations on livelihood, employment and scholarships, among others.
It aims to bring the frontline services of the provincial government to the far-flung areas in Ilocos Norte wherein people have limited access to the capitol.—Jennifer T. Pambid, PGIN-CMO
Photo courtesy of Alaric Yanos, PGIN-CMO
