Ilocos Norte cops help aid stranded boarders

By Leilanie G. Adriano

Staff Reporter

LAOAG CITY—Michael Opiña and six other families composed of 23 members from Bagong Silang, Caloocan City were stranded in a Laoag boarding house when Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Joseph M. Manotoc declared a total lockdown in the province on March 30, 2020.

Relying on their daily income from selling promo detergent powder which they sell from house to house in the city, Mr. Opiña said they are thankful for good Samaritans such as members of the Philippine National Police manning the village checkpoint near them who share their food whenever they have extra.

Seeing the plight of the stranded sellers along with their small children whom they brought along with them in the city made the Barangay Pila bypass road border control personnel sad as they are just among those families who are struggling for food in time of the COVID-19 crisis.

Police Staff Sgt. Randy Canonizado of the Ilocos Norte Police Provincial Office and one of those assigned at the Pila border control said he is excited whenever someone or a group of generous people stop by at the checkpoint and give them food.

“People drop us food and it boost our morale whenever they thank us for keeping them safe while staying home,” said Mr. Canonizado but what excites him most is when they have extra food and these are shared to the starving families who are stranded just a few meters from the border control they are assigned to.

Later, another food pack was delivered at the doorstep of the stranded families, this time through a neighbor, P/Senior Master Sgt. Noel R. Abad, whose house is just a few blocks away from them.

Mr. Abad lives in Brgy. Pila and it was through Mr. Canonizado whom he learned about the plight of the stranded families.

“Anyone who could see them would be touched. They are just boarding here and rely on a daily commission. If they cannot go out to sell their products, they have nothing to feed their growing family,” said Mr. Abad.

With this, the cops are appealing for more generous individuals to support Mr. Opiña’s family and the other stranded families who could not go home yet until the total lockdown is over.

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