Moncada Municipal Gym, Tarlac
12 October 2012

President Benigno S. Aquino III graced the launching of the “Hardin ng Lunas” in his home province Tarlac, a project aimed to provide affordable and sustainable alternative medicines to the locality, especially to those residing in far-flung areas with no access to physicians and western medicines.

In his message, the President underscored the importance in planting vegetables and other medicinal plants as an immediate source of alternative cure to common ailments. He added that each municipality in Tarlac will be given a land to cultivate into herbal garden to be facilitated by the Tarlac Heritage Foundation who he has tasked to ensure its completion.

President Aquino also expressed his confidence that the project will yield additional livelihood income for the community to be commercialized as herbal product as soon as the Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care gives its approval that the produce are safe and quality assured.

During the event, seven pairs of Boer/Anglo Nubian Goats were also turned over to different municipalities to be inter-bred with the local breed.

‘Hardin ng Lunas’ was the brainchild project of Dr. Isabel Cojuangco Suntay, second-cousin of President Aquino, which started in June 20, 2012. The project initially covered the towns of Moncada, Anao, Pura Paniqui, San Miguel, Camiling, Gerona and Tarlac City, and plans to cover the rest of the municipalities of Tarlac after the grand launch. They will also distribute 250 herbal/medicinal plants, consisting of 25 varieties, all grown in Tarlac College of Agriculture to be distributed to each of the municipalities.

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