Doing her part: Actress Angel Locsin visits Marawi evacuees

(Zea Io Ming C. Capistrano/davaotoday.com)

MARAWI CITY, Philippines — Actress Angel Locsin visited hundreds of evacuees here Friday morning as she expressed her solidarity with the civilians affected by the conflict in Marawi City.

Inside the Mahad Abdul Hamid Al Islamie Evacuation Center in Balo-i town, Lanao del Norte, 283 families of Maranao benefited from 300 packs of relief goods which the actress provided. Locsin, who is Angela Colmenares in real life, partnered with civil-society organizations Kalinaw Mindanao and the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines.

In her brief speech, Colmenares said: “Hindi ko po alam kung anong sasabihin ko sa inyo pero isa po ako sa nagdurugo ang puso sa nangyari sana po makagaan ng loob kahit papaano.”

Colmenares later had a courtesy visit with her grand uncle, Mayor Elias Ali, the first cousin of Bailabi Potri Ali Pacasum.

The Pacasum clan adopted Colmenares’ biologic mother. The Pacasum families have properties in Marawi City including a school named Pacasum Colleges of Marawi, and commercial buildings majority of which are located in Barangay Banggolo.

Colmenares also visited Marawi provincial capitol where she met with the former governor and now Vice Governor of Lanao Del Sur Bombit Adiong at the Governor’s Palace.

Soldiers escorted the actress as she was briefed by Zia Alonto Adiong, spokesperson of the Provincial Crisis Committee Operation Center.

Asked why she went to Marawi during an interview with reporters here, Colmenares said “ginagawa ko lang ang part ko (I’m just doing my part).”

(Zea Io Ming C. Capistrano/davaotoday.com)

Colmenares said she only hopes that the residents could return back to their city the soonest time possible. She added that soldiers too should be home with their families.

“Yun naman ang lagi kong naririnig na hinihiling ng mga tao (That’s what I hear from people whom I’ve talked to),” she said.

During her visit, gunfires can still be heard in the city. The actress admitted that she felt worried but added that even other people like the media, soldiers, government officials and volunteers brave to come and stay inside the war-torn city.

“Nakakakaba, pero kung kayo nga nandito eh,” she said.

This is not the first time that the actress engaged in relief operations during disasters. She also initiated a relief drive for Typhoon Ondoy victims in 2009.(davaotoday.com)