On October 1, 2020, Consul and Head of Post Zhou Youbin of the Chinese Consulate in Laoag visited the northern border checkpoint of Ilocos Norte. Consul Zhou expressed his appreciation and gratitude to all frontline workers by personally giving them mooncakes, fast food, drinks and face masks.

Consul Zhou was delighted to see the newly set up test facility at the border, especially that the personnels are protected with PPEs donated by China. He said, "We are proud to support brave Ilokano frontline workers. I would like to extend our deepest respect to all police, soldiers, medical  workers, firemen and local officials. Thank you for your selfless service to protect the whole community."

Zhou added that October 1st of this year marks the 71st anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, and it also happens to be the Mid-Autumn Festival (Mooncake Festival) in the traditional Chinese lunar calendar. "We value the longstanding friendship between Filipinos and Chinese. Together, we will finally win the battle against the virus. Wish everyone a Happy Mooncake Festival. "

Mr. Ryan Remigio, the External Affairs Consultant and Head of Borders of Ilocos Norte, thanked the Consul for his support. "Since we started to require COVID test at our borders, unnecessary travels decreased by almost 50%. We appreciate the Chinese Consulate in Ilocos Norte for donating PPEs to our border frontliners."

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Chinese Consulate in Laoag, in association with Shandong Province, Sichuan Province, Hubei Enterprise, has been donating different anti-pandemic protective materials to the northern Luzon, including 125,000 pieces of surgical or disposable masks, 15000 pieces of N95 or KN 95 masks, 3000 pieces of medical goggles, 1000 pieces of faceshields, 4010 sets of medical gawns, 5000 pairs of medical shoe covers, and 10000 pairs of medical gloves, and other sanitary materials. All the equipments were distributed to hospitals, testing centers as well as airport, schools and borders.

At the same time, the Consulate also donated batches of relief goods including rice, cans, and other food to the people in Ilocos Norte through Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc, Congresswoman Ria Fariñas, Laoag City Mayor Micheal Marcos Keon, San Nicolas Mayor Alfredo Valdez. Moreover, the Consulate also donated 100 tons of premium rice to the province of Ilocos Sur, La Union, Pangasinan, Cagayan, Isabella, Quirono, Nueva Viscaya, Benguet, and the city of Baguio and Santiago in the past few months.

In his article published in local newspapers including Sunstar, The Ilocos Times, The Northern Light last week, the Consul expressed his gratitude for the support of Filipinos during the most difficult times of China against the pandemic. He recalled the support from the former Senator Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Ilocos Norte Governor Matthew Marcos Manotoc, Ilocos Sur Governor Ryan Singson, and other government officials, as well as monetary and material donations from sectors including the Filipino-Chinese community. And what impressed him the most was the song video, "Let the World be full of love", recorded by teachers and students from Paoay National High School in Ilocos Norte last February. He wrote, "Truly, love is the support for all of us going through these tough times. May China and the Philippines continue to work with solidarity and love."