AFP
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has released guidelines for the distribution of cash assistance, worth P5,000, for families displaced from the predominantly Muslim city of Marawi which has been besieged by a terror group since May 23.
In a statement on Wednesday, Social Welfare Secretary Judy Taguiwalo said the assistance would be released in two tranches. The first will be distributed earlier to help families observing Ramadan to procure appropriate food for the month-long religious holiday and the second will help in transportation costs.
“We have decided to provide each affected family with P1,000 apart from the family food packs and all the other food donations that we are receiving on their behalf. The families can use the money to buy food that is more suitable for them when they break their fast at sunset,” Taguiwalo said.
During Ramadan, Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset. The DSWD, in its statement, recognized that the usual contents of their family food packs—six kilos of rice, three cans of corned beef, three cans of sardines, and six packs of ready-to-drink coffee—are not suitable for the Muslim holiday.
“As for the remaining P4,000, it will be released to each family when it is already safe for them to return to Marawi. We are also preparing other actions to help them when they resume their lives in their communities—other DSWD programs will be made accessible to them,” Taguiwalo added.