Lysol teams up with Philippine Red Cross to battle COVID-19
Lysol Philippines has partnered with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) for Disinfect to Protect, a joint mission to ensure everybody is protected from illnesses, by breaking the chain of infection.
Through the endeavor, the disinfectant brand will donate P36 million to boost mass testing in support of government efforts, bring it to the most vulnerable groups, and encourage Filipinos to sanitize their surroundings to protect them from disease-causing germs.
Half of the donation will be used to build a COVID-19 mass testing center in Cagayan De Oro City. To be known as the Philippine Red Cross Molecular Laboratory, the facility will have 2 polymerase chain reaction machines that can process 2,000 tests per day.
The other half of the donation–P18 million–will go to the COVID-19 Samaritan Fund to shoulder processing fees to test around 4,500 Filipinos from the most susceptible groups, including the elderly, pregnant women and those with pre-existing health conditions, especially in poor communities.
Lysol will also turn over P5 million worth of its products to help disinfect PRC sample collection areas, as well as testing laboratories, to keep frontline healthcare workers and communities protected against the novel coronavirus.
“We welcome Lysol as our partner in helping control the spread of COVID19. They are a company who has invested most of their resources in studying pathogens and developing solutions that can kill these. They know what we are up against, and how we can stop the infection,” said Sen Gordon, Chairman of the Philippine Red Cross.
San Miguel to help farmers, poor communities
San Miguel Corp. (SMC) is set to buy fresh carabao’s milk from farmer-cooperatives struggling to cope with the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, to be donated to poor communities and food banks in and around Metro Manila.
The initiative is the company’s latest response to support the agricultural sector through the crisis brought about by the pandemic.
SMC president Ramon Ang said the company will start identifying farmer-cooperatives it will buy carabao’s milk from, who will then identify poor communities and feeding centers they can deliver their produce.
SMC is targeting to have the milk sent to hard-hit communities and feeding centers in Bulacan, Navotas and various localities around Metro Manila.
The company hopes to start rolling out the program soon with the help of the government through the Department of Agriculture, Department of Health and the Department of Interior and Local Government.
Meanwhile, SMC further expands ongoing Covid-19 relief efforts, which includes some P487 million worth of food donations as of May 12. SMC’s total Covid-19 response at the time had reached P13.08 billion.
HARI turns over COVID-ready vehicles
Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI) turned over its first COVID-ready vehicles to bolster the Department of Transportation’s (DOTr) response to the mobility needs of front liners under the New Normal.
The first four prototypes will be on loan to the DOTr for three months for the agency’s Libreng Sakay for Frontliners.
Hyundai developed a special COVID-ready model lineup for its best-selling H-100 Shuttle, HD36 Shuttle, and Modern Jeepney HD50S Class 2. Said units have been declared highly-compliant with the DOTR’s guidelines for the transport sector under EECQ/GCQ.
New features include individualized seating in lieu of the standard bench-type seats to comply with maximum capacity; transparent plastic dividers; and special dispensers and floor mats for immediate on-the-go sanitation. The units designed for commercial use are also installed with a front and back contactless payment system.
Libreng Sakay currently has 20 defined routes with designated drop-off and pick-up points for medical workers.
The company is also joining Hatid Estudyante. Launched last May 16, it aims to bring home over 9,000 students who were stranded in Metro Manila since the mid-March declaration of the ECQ.
As regards road-worthiness, it is to be recalled that Hyundai’s Modern Jeepneys H-100 Class 1 and HD50S Class 2 already received their Certificates of Compliance (COC) from the DOTr late last year; while the HD50S Class 3 Modern Jeepney, which debuted in January 2020, was poised to undergo the Department’s stringent testing.
Ayala Group pays tribute to essential workers
The Ayala Group of Companies has released an original song written by Maestro Ryan Cayabyab, National Artist of the Philippines for Music in 2018, to pay homage to over 18,000 members of its essential workforce.
“We are giving a special tribute to our many fellow Ayala citizens, who continue to provide critical services to our stakeholders amidst COVID-19–those who ensure that our facilities remain safe for our employees, clients, and customers; those who ensure the continuous delivery of essential services through our banks and our power, water, and telco, facilities; and the many others who brave the dangers of the ongoing pandemic as we adapt to this new world,” said Ayala Corp. president and chief operating officer Fernando Zobel de Ayala.
Since the pandemic struck the Philippines, essential workers across the group have been selflessly dedicating themselves to serving the needs of the Filipino. AC Health’s medical practitioners across its network of clinics and drugstores have been reporting to work to provide much needed clinic, pharmaceutical, and telemedicine services. Manila Water, AC Energy, and Globe Telecom personnel have worked non-stop to ensure the continued availability of water, power, and connectivity, respectively. Ayala Land’s property management team has also continued to keep its malls, buildings, and communities safe and clean during this pandemic. The Ayala Group recognizes these workers, among its many others, who continue to serve the nation during this difficult period.
The Ayala Group essential workforce was featured in a music video together with Cayabyab’s original song, entitled “Nandiyan Ka”, in a livestreamed private event last week.
Jollibee coin banks go digital to raise funds for frontliners
In response to many families going hungry this COVID-19 pandemic, the Jollibee Group has been providing food to frontliners and affected families through its FoodAID Program. To give the public a convenient way to help feed even more families, the Jollibee Group Foundation (JGF) is now taking the coin banks that used to be found only on the counters of Jollibee Group stores and making them available online for the first time.
The coin banks used to be found only inside the branches of Jollibee, Chowking, Mang Inasal, Greenwich, Burger King, Red Ribbon, Pho24, and Highlands Coffee. Now, these coin banks may also be found online via the www.jollibeefoundation.org
Donations through the digital coin bank will be used to bring food packs directly to the doorsteps of families in need through the help of non-governmental organization (NGO) partners of JGF. The online coin bank program is on top of Jollibee Group’s P220 million-worth of food donations that have already served over 3.8 million meals to frontliners and families in need since March this year.
To help raise awareness for the digital coin bank and the thousands of families it will be able to help, Asia’s Songbird Regine Velasquez-Alcasid will be contributing her talent via a free online concert called “Regine: Joy from Home.” The concert can be streamed on the Jollibee Facebook Page and on the Jollibee Studios YouTube Channel on June 7, Sunday, at 8 in the evening.
AboitizPower sends food, sanitation supplies to hospitals
AboitizPower continues to boost its support to doctors, nurses, and hospital staff on the front lines to help energize and uplift their spirits for what seems to be an endlessly uncertain path to achieving full COVID-19 recoveries.
Following the turnover of 20,000 surgical masks in partner hospitals around Luzon and Visayas, AboitizPower’s Commercial Operations Business Unit delivered assorted grocery items to nourish hospital staff from Perpetual Help Hospital in Las Piñas and Biñan including Mary Mediatrix Medical Center in Batangas.
On top of these food supplies, around 60 gallons of Isopropyl alcohol were also distributed to help replenish the sanitation supplies needed to protect the front liners.
As businesses slowly work towards rebooting their services, hospitals such as Perpetual Help Biñan have likewise resumed some of their diagnostic and laboratory services to continue catering to the health needs of their community and to ensure an effective infection control system is in place.
These supplies are invaluable in augmenting resources needed to empower front liners and support hospital staff in managing outpatient services and keeping operations afloat.
In the Visayas, AboitizPower partnered with Pilmico Foods Corporation to distribute bread packs that were sourced from local bakeries near hospitals around Cebu and Bacolod.
Perpetual Succour Hospital, Chong Hua Hospital in Fuente and Mandaue, and Riverside Medical Center in Bacolod each received 1,000 packs of bread. Pilmico has since been conducting a bread donation drive, tapping local bakeries to encourage production and sustain livelihood within communities.
