Cash aid flow slow, only P 22B distributed

MANILA, Philippines — With only less than 10 days left before the lockdown’s scheduled end, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has distributed less than a quarter of the first tranche of cash aid to poor families across the country who were hit hardest by the enhanced community quarantine.

Despite the slow progress, however, the DSWD is optimistic about completing the distribution of P100 billion in social amelioration funds to 18 million low-income families by April 30.

As of Sunday, DSWD data showed that only P22 billion had so far been distributed to 4.7 million families deemed eligible for the government’s social amelioration program (SAP).

Social Welfare Undersecretary Camilo Gudmalin said of the P22 billion, P6 billion went to over one million poor families who were not part of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps). At least P16.3 billion were given to 3.7 million 4Ps beneficiaries through their cash cards.

In Metro Manila, more than 40,000 drivers of public utility vehicles and transport network vehicle services received cash aid amounting to P323 million.

Put together, the amount that had actually reached poor families were a little over 20 percent of the total allocated funds for the first month of the P200-billion amelioration program. At least 13 million families are still waiting for cash aid from the national government.

The DSWD earlier targeted to complete by April 25 the distribution of the first tranche, where poor families can expect to receive aid of between P5,000 and P8,000, depending on where they reside.

On Monday, however, Gudmalin said that the payouts—which were administered by the local governments—would be completed by the end of April.cro

“What we see in our monitoring … is that local government units are continuing the distribution,” he told a press briefing. “Based on our estimates, and if the current trend continues, we will finish the distribution of subsidy before the end of the month.”

Whether this new target will be realized, however, remains to be seen.

In Metro Manila alone, which got the lion’s share of the SAP funds, some local government units (LGUs) only began their distribution last week. Others, like in Navotas, Valenzuela, and Pateros, are still distributing or collecting the forms needed for the payouts.

Last week, the DSWD said LGUs could already proceed to give cash aid to poor residents in their jurisdictions, without waiting for the agency to validate their lists of beneficiaries. INQ