House insists on ‘ayuda’ Senate wants to defund

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MANILA, Philippines — Even as the Senate said it was inclined to defund a program giving aid, called “ayuda” in the vernacular, to the almost poor, a senior lawmaker filed a second bill to make permanent the government’s Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (Akap).

Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro’s House Bill (HB) No. 11048, or the proposed Akap Act, underwent its first reading during the plenary session on Nov. 13 at the House of Representatives, two days after it was filed. It was referred for further study to the committee on social services.

A similar measure, HB 10700, was filed earlier in July by Camarines Norte Rep. Rosemarie Panotes and was referred to the same panel in August.

READ: P253 billion ‘ayuda’ to vulnerable sectors included in 2025 budget – DBM

Luistro said: “Inflation has reduced the purchasing power of many Filipino workers, leaving many of them and their families barely surviving on a day-to-day basis if not completely living in a state of perpetual poverty.”

She noted that salary hikes still fall short of living wages that would enable workers to live decently and provide ample support to their families.

Regular gov’t program

She added her draft measure seeks to make Akap a regular government program and ensure its continued implementation.

HB 11048 declares as state policy the protection of the rights of minimum wage earners and provides “assistance geared towards alleviating and improving the quality of life of every worker, especially the minimum wage earners.”

The bill states that qualified beneficiaries can avail from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) food, medical and funeral financial assistance, as well as cash-relief aid.

It added: “Financial assistance may be given in outright cash if the amount of assistance ranges from P5,000 to P15,000, subject to the assessment of the DSWD. For assistance above P15,000, the same shall be provided through a guarantee letter approved by the secretary of the DSWD or his duly authorized representative.”

Financial aid for qualified beneficiaries coursed through local governments would be called “rice assistance,” the amount for which would be “equivalent to half of the cost of 25 kilograms of rice based on the suggested retail price from the Department of Agriculture.”

“The amount of each transfer [from the DSWD] to the local government unit shall not exceed P30 million,” it added.

HB 11048 tasks the DSWD to craft the implementing guidelines of the measure and to provide funding for the program in its annual budget.

In Panotes’ HB 10700, which contains the same provisions as HB 11048, the lawmaker cited the success of the DSWD’s Akap in tiding over low-income earners through the high costs of goods and services, being a program under a special provision in the 2024 General Appropriations Act.

Crucial aid

Panotes maintained it was crucial to continue the program regardless of who leads the country.

Last week, several House leaders, including vice chairpersons of the committee on appropriations, vowed to fight to retain Akap funding in the 2025 national budget, asserting that it has been a “lifeline” for millions of minimum wage earners who are ineligible for government assistance for indigents.

Assistant Majority Leader Raul Angelo Bongalon, who is vice chair of the appropriations panel, described Akap as a “crucial aid for those who are most vulnerable to economic shocks.”