Reso commending Ana Patricia Non, other community pantry volunteers filed in Senate

A resolution commending Maginhawa community pantry organizer Ana Patricia Non and volunteers of thousands of similar initiative all over the country for igniting the bayanihan spirit of Filipinos amid the COVID-19 pandemic was filed in the Senate Monday.

Under Senate Resolution 714 filed by Senator Grade Poe, the spirited moment of selflessness amid the pandemic must be encouraged and aided by the government to ensure the implementation of health and safety protocols instead of closing it down or subjecting it to red-tagging.

It added the more than 6,700 community pantries now in existence across the country show that one’s act of generosity can spark a movement and set in motion a phenomenon of giving and sharing

“The proliferation of community pantries all over the country is proof that the Filipino bayanihan spirit is alive and many Filipinos remain willing to help despite experiencing hardships themselves,” the resolution read.

Non, a 26-year-old University of the Philippines alumnae, sought to address hunger in her community by parking her bamboo cart filled with food items beside a tree in Maginhawa street, Quezon City bearing the now famous slogan “Magbigay ayon sa kakayahan, kumuha batay sa pangangailangan.”

She posted this initiative on Facebook and it instantly went viral leading to the influx of donations and hordes of people lining up to get much needed commodities.

“Aside from giving food and nourishment to thousands, the first community pantry encouraged kindness and compassion, re-awakened the sense of solidarity among Filipinos, and inspired many more to do the same,” the resolution said.

Amid the growing popularity of the community pantry, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict and the Quezon City Police District linked the initiative to the communist movement on social media.

With this, on April 20, Non announced the temporary closure of the Maginhawa Community Pantry. It resumed operations on April 21.

While the QCPD apologized for its social media post, NTF-ELCAC spokesperson Lieutenant General Antonio Parlade, Jr. likened Non and other community pantries to Satan’s deception of Eve and admitted that the NTF-ELCAC was conducting background checks on community pantry organizers. He alleged that the initiatives have been the source of anti-government propaganda.

Senators have slammed the NTF-ELCAC's comments on the community pantries, while the National Privacy Commission also condemned the “unjust” profiling of community pantry organizers.—AOL, GMA News