Vico Sotto apologizes for ‘disorder’ at 2 Pasig cash aid sites

Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto. (File photo by RYAN LEAGOGO / INQUIRER.net)

MANILA, Philippines — Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto on Tuesday apologized for the “brief disorder” that erupted at two venues in the city where displaced workers were filing applications for cash aid under the TUPAD program.

TUPAD  stands for  Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers, a community-based project of the Department of Labor and Employment.

“I apologize for the brief disorder that took place at the two venues of the LGU-TUPAD sign-up,” Sotto said in Filipino in a statement.

Citing a report from the city’s Peace and Order Department, Sotto explained that the residents’ queue at Plaza Bonifacio was actually orderly at the start — until someone shouted that the lanes were organized per barangay, which caused the people to scramble.

“In Rainforest Park, someone pushed into a gate and people scrambled ahead when it opened,” Sotto said.

The mayor, however, assured that the city’s security officers and police officers were quick to respond to the two incidents and were able to resolve the situation immediately.

Sotto reminded Pasig citizens that the queues were set up to be fast as there was no interview, and they only have to put their applications in a dropbox.

The“first-come, first-served” dropbox system, he explained, was adopted because the Public Employment Service Office (PESO) previously encountered issues when they tried to implement the program at the barangay level.

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