‘Pittance,’ says Bayan Muna of P1-K ECQ ayuda for Metro folk

FILE PHOTO: A resident of Baseco, Manila, on Wednesday, April 7, 2021, falls in line to get financial assistance after the government extended the enhanced community quarantine  (ECQ) from April 5-11, 2021, due to the surge of COVID-19 cases in the National Capital Region. Niño Jesus Orbeta/Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — The proposed P1,000 cash aid for Metro Manila residents whose jobs are at risk because of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) is a mere pittance since the region is one of the most expensive places to live, party-list group Bayan Muna said on Wednesday.

House Deputy Minority leader and Bayan Muna Rep. Carlos Zarate said that the P13.1 billion social aid — which will be given to 10.7 million beneficiaries — would not cover basic needs once the two-week ECQ from August 6 to 20 kicks in.

According to him, the supposed P13 billion being prepared by the government out of its savings is a mere pittance in comparison to the cost of basic needs for Filipino families living in the National Capital Region (NCR) for two weeks.

Zarate cited a recent study by iPrice Group, which stated that Metro Manila is Southeast Asia’s third-most expensive place to live in, within the Southeast Asian region.  It is estimated that each person spends an estimated monthly cost of P50,800, which goes down to around P28,800 if rent expenses are not needed.

“Para po ito sa isang tao lang, kung wala daw renta ay P28,800 kada buwan ang kailangan para mabuhay ng maayos. Hatiin natin ito sa 2 linggo ay kailangan pa din ng P14,400 ng isang tao sa Maynila tapos bibigyan mo lang ng P1,000 para mabuhay?” Zarate asked.

(For only one person, if there is no rent, the monthly income needs to be P28,800. If we divide it by 2, do they still need to have P14,400 and you just give them P1,000 per week to live?)

“It is not even commensurate to 2 days of daily minimum wage in NCR. And is definitely below the Php 1,058 daily family living wage for a family of five.  Even if the government gives P4,000 per family it is far from enough because based on the iPrice data a family of four would need P57,600 to live comfortably for two weeks,” he added.

READ: Manila is Southeast Asia’s 3rd most expensive city to live in, study shows

Metro Manila is set to go under an ECQ status again due to the threat of the Delta variant over the country.

This will be the third time that Metro Manila is under an ECQ after the Luzon-wide lockdown in March 2020 — first in August 2020, second during the Alpha variant-led surge last March 2021, and then this latest ECQ declaration.

READ: Metro Manila under ECQ from August 6 to 20 

The mechanics of the latest ECQ aid for Metro Manila follow the same procedure as the last lockdown for the National Capital Region (NCR) and adjacent provinces: each individual affected by the lockdowns would receive P1,000.

This would have a cap of P4,000 per family.

Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque released the figures on Tuesday, as he said that the cash grants would be sourced from the government’s savings.

READ: ‘Ayuda’ for ECQ-hit Metro Manila residents will come from gov’t savings – Palace 

Zarate argued that this proposed aid is woefully inadequate.

“Kulang na kulang ang ayudang plano ng gobyerno at di pa tiyak kung 2 linggo nga lang ba ang lockdown at kung maibibigay ba sa oras ang ayuda. Tapos plano pa nilang ibawal o higpitan ang mga community pantries para makapagtulungan ang mamamayan?” he stressed.

(The government’s plan for aid is incredibly limited. It isn’t yet clear if the aid will be paid on time. Then they plan to ban or tighten community pantries so that people will cooperate?)

“Wag naman sanang baratin ang mamamayan! Kapag dolomite o kampanya sa eleksyon may sako-sakong pera pero sa ayuda para sa mga Pilipino, tinitipid,” he added, referring to President Rodrigo Duterte’s statements about promising sacks of cash for PDP-Laban candidates.

(Don’t undervalue the people! When the dolomite or election campaign uses immense amounts of money, but with aid for Filipinos, less is given.)

READ: No money for ‘ayuda’ but has ‘sacks of cash’ for 2022 polls? Solon questions source of Duterte funds 

When NCR Plus ECQ was underway in April 2021, Bayan Muna spent P1,000 on groceries to demonstrate how small the cash aid was.

According to Bayan Muna, it is not enough to feed a family of four for two weeks.

READ: P1K cash aid not enough for 2-week ECQ — Bayan Muna 

Zarate believes the solution to this problem is for President Duterte to classify Bayanihan One or Bayanihan 3 as urgent, so that Congress passes it immediately.

“We are again urging Pres.Duterte to classify as urgent the Bayanihan 3 bill so as to at least give P10,000 aid to our countrymen because it is what people need now in the middle of an intensified pandemic,” he noted.