DILG to ‘call the attention’ of brgy execs who did not publish names of SAP beneficiaries

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) will “call the attention” of barangay officials who did not make public the names of beneficiaries of the first tranche of the social amelioration program (SAP) in their respective areas.

Jonathan Malaya, DILG spokesperson and Undersecretary for Plans, Public Affairs, and Communication, said the department has received reports of barangays where the list of beneficiaries was not publicly disclosed but added that these are “mostly isolated cases.”

“There has been almost universal compliance” to the department’s order to fully disclose the list of target beneficiaries to promote transparency on the distribution of the financial subsidy, said Malaya.

“We will call the attention of these barangays and ask them to explain why [they did not make public the list of the names],” Malaya said in a text message to INQUIRER.net.

“We will file admin charges against the barangay officials responsible for dereliction of duty,” he added.

In an interview with Teleradyo on Wednesday, Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said local government units (LGUs) that have failed to reach even 80 percent of the SAP distribution in their areas on the May 10 deadline will be required to submit their explanations.

A total of 1,265 out of all 1,634 LGUs in the country were able to meet the May 10 deadline of completing the disbursement of the SAP cash aid to qualified beneficiaries. The national payout rate as of the deadline was at 90.86 percent as of the deadline.

/MUF