MANILA, Philippines — The year 2011 will be remembered as the year when Vice President Jejomar Binay went all-out in the delivery of social programs around the country, something that the multi-tasking official hopes to replicate this New Year.

Binay capped off 2011 by being one of the first high-ranking official to visit and aid the areas of Cagayan de Oro (CDO) and Iligan in Mindanao, which were battered by tropical storm “Sendong” in early December.

The Vice President immediately flew to CDO to check on flood victims, give out 2,880 bags of relief goods and condole with the relatives of those who perished in the flash floods.

He also ordered the OVP to distribute 5,000 bags of relief goods to victims in Iligan City; 5,000 to Dumaguete City; and another 10,000 bags to CDO. He instructed the Pag-IBIG fund to expedite the processing of calamity loans for victims in CDO and Iligan.

Just before Christmas, Binay flew to Negros Oriental to check on those affected by “Sendong” in the Visayas. The Vice President visited the cities of Dumaguete and Tanjay, as well as the towns of Amlan, Sibulan and Valencia.

He said he wanted to ensure that those affected by floods would celebrate Christmas with dignity. "We want our kababayans to at least still celebrate the holidays knowing that they have the basic necessities that they need to survive.”

The OVP donated a total of 10,500 bags of relief goods and 800 blankets to the affected areas of Negros Oriental. Binay also gave financial assistance to families in Valencia and Dumaguete.

The Vice President also took a very active role in the disaster mitigation efforts of his office. The OVP distributed 6,000 bags of relief goods to the towns in Bulacan affected by floods brought about by typhoon “Quiel” in October.

Upon the instruction of the Vice President, Pag-IBIG also declared a three-month moratorium on housing loan payments for its member-borrowers who were affected by the destruction caused by typhoons “Pedring” and “Quiel.”

Last September, Binay again awarded cash assistance amounting to P30,000 to the widows of 49 soldiers killed in action in Mindanao. In November, he gave P30,000 each to 15 families of soldiers who were killed in an ambush in Al-Barka, Basilan.

Binay also allocated P150 million for the construction and repair of a total of 300 senior citizens centers all over the country in 2011.

The Office of the Vice President (OVP) has also earmarked P10 million to provide educational assistance to a total of 1,090 students—10 scholars for each of the 109 state colleges and universities in the country—under “2011 Vice President Grant-in-Aid Program.”

As a reserve Marines colonel and co-chairman of the Alay sa Kawal (ASK) Foundation, Binay made sure that the dependents of soldiers wounded or killed in action are well cared for.

In May, he awarded P30,000 each to 53 dependents of 49 soldiers who were killed and four who were seriously wounded in action at Camp Panacan in Davao City.