NEWSFLASH

DRA. LOI TREATS THOUSANDS IN PANGASINAN MISSION

Tayug, Pangasinan, Aug. 14, 1999 - First Lady Dr. Luisa "Loi" Ejercito Estrada motored to this town early Friday morning for her monthly pilgrimage to the Lady of Manaoag and to lead a medical and dental mission for poor residents of Tayug and four other towns in the eastern part of Pangasinan.

The First Lady's medical and dental mission as well as the distribution of relief goods were held at the town plaza here.

Aside from Tayug residents, those coming from the neighboring towns of San Quintin, Sta. Maria, Natividad and San Nicolas also availed themselves of the services offered by the mission.

Some 2,000 patients lined up as early as 7:30 A.M. to seek the free services provided by the First Lady's Serbisyong Panggamutan Para sa Mahirap (Medical Services for the Poor), one of the five projects under the Erap Partnerships for the Poor Foundation, Inc. (EPPFI).

The other projects are the Potable Water for Health and Livelihood, Street Children Rehabilitation, Livelihood for the Poor, and Environmental Well-Being with Flowers and Vegetables.

The 15-member medical team from the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) was augmented by doctors and dentists from the Eastern Pangasinan Hospital led by Dr. Jovencio Tumbaga. Several patients given initial treatment during the mission will be brought to PGH for further examination and medical intervention.

Nanet Tanyag, program director of the Office of the First Lady, said the free medicines provided to patients were donations of the MARE (Masa ang Riwasa ni Erap) group, an active partner and supporter of the various humanitarian projects of the First Lady.

Despite the heavy downpour here, Dr. Loi and her MARE group distributed relief goods to 3,000 flood-stricken families in Pangasinan. Most of the beneficiaries were poor people residing along the Agno River, which overflowed last week.

Local government officials led by Tayug Mayor Marius Ladio thanked the First Lady for her tireless efforts to help the poor through her medical missions, which have become a welcome sight at various depressed communities around the country.

---

Reported by: Sol Jose Vanzi