BY LESLIE ANN G. AQUINO
The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) will distribute on Monday hundreds of bicycles to displaced workers in various points in Luzon as part of its Free Bisikleta (FreeBis) project.
In a statement, the labor department said an initial 850 bicycle units will be given in Metro Manila to beneficiaries pre-selected by the local government units.
The simultaneous launch will be held in Manila, Muntinlupa, Mandaluyong and Pasig in the National Capital Region, and in Tuguegarao, Cagayan; Bacoor, Cavite; and Legazpi City, Albay.
According to DoLE, the beneficiaries in NCR will be given bicycle units that they will use as delivery riders of partner companies Grab and LalaFood; while group beneficiaries will be assisted in their livelihood undertaking that will cater to the needs of bicycle commuters.
“The bicycle units in NCR will come complete with helmet, raincoat, water bottle, thermal bag and Android mobile phone with a P5,000 load in electronic payment application,” said DoLE.
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III will lead officials in the turnover of the bicycle units to 256 Manila beneficiaries at the DoLE central office in Intramuros. He will be joined by Manila Mayor “Isko Moreno” Domagoso.
Another set of 190 beneficiaries will receive their bicycles in Muntinlupa, Pasig and Mandaluyong.
The signing of a memorandum of agreement on the FreeBis Project Convergence with Grab and LalaFood will also be held during the event.
FreeBis is a project under the Integrated Livelihood Program of DoLE meant to help ease unemployment by providing livelihood opportunities to workers in the formal and informal sectors displaced by the COVID pandemic. (Leslie Ann G. Aquino)
