Around 11 million families to get second tranche of COVID-19 cash aid – DSWD
Published May 13, 2020 12:29:08 PM
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 13)— Around 11 million families are expected to be included in the second tranche of the government’s COVID-19 cash aid program, the Social Welfare Department said Wednesday.
Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista told CNN Philippines that “more or less” 11.1 million families from areas still placed under enhanced community quarantine will be included in the new beneficiary list for the social amelioration program.
Bautista, however, said the agency is still awaiting an executive order before officials can craft the final guidelines for the distribution of the subsidy. He added authorities will also need to validate local government units’ liquidation reports prior to the implementation of the next tranche— to make sure that the right beneficiaries get aid.
For now, the DSWD chief said the agency is studying other options that may help speed up the distribution of assistance to crisis-affected citizens— including possibly tapping online platforms.
“Kaya nga, pinag-aaralan namin ‘yung sinasabi nating using other digital platforms para mas mabilis at the same time, ‘yung walang contact sa pagbibigay ng ayuda,” Bautista said in an interview with The Source.
[Translation: That’s why we’re looking at what we call using other digital platforms so we can fast track the distribution, at the same time, there will be no contact in the distribution of the assistance.]
Malacañang on Tuesday announced that only residents of areas under the “modified” ECQ— Metro Manila, Laguna province, and Cebu City— will be qualified in the next wave of subsidy, citing limited funds approved by Congress.
The first tranche of the government’s SAP initially covered 18 million low-income households, who were expected to receive ₱5,000 to ₱8,000 worth of assistance. Roque later on revealed that an additional five million beneficiaries left out of the LGUs’ lists would be included in the first batch of subsidy.
Roadblocks in SAP distribution?
Bautista meanwhile acknowledged criticisms on the slow rollout of cash aid in several regions, but noted there had been some roadblocks in distribution.
Citing reports from on-ground personnel, the Social Welfare Secretary said some high-risk areas succumbed to a reduced workforce, as a single COVID-19 infection will place other front-liners under quarantine.
“Kaya ang nangyayari, pag na-infect iyon, mababawasan ang workforce, magkakaroon ngayon ng sabihin nating delay,” Bautista explained.
[Translation: When that happens, when someone gets infected, the workforce will be reduced, we will have what we call a delay.]
He added that security issues such as military-rebel encounters also push distribution programs to a later date.
In April, two soldiers escorting aid workers in Aurora province were killed by armed communist rebels. The report has earned a fresh series of tirades from President Rodrigo Duterte, who has since warned against rebel groups’ attacks amid the current health crisis.
Aside from these factors, Bautista added that the timeline of aid distribution has also been affected by some local governments’ re-validation of beneficiary lists.
Citing DSWD’s latest report, Bautista said that 16.5 million families have already received cash assistance, with ₱93.5 billion already released in the first tranche. He reported that 1,078 local government units have already achieved the 100 percent completion rate in the subsidy distribution.
Bautista added that the SAP distribution will remain ongoing, even as the national government’s deadline has lapsed.
