The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has identified a total of 45,055 families in Puerto Princesa City that will receive P5,000 under the national government’s Social Amelioration Program (SAP) over the next two months.
A City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSDWO) official told city councilors during the legislative Question Hour on Monday that their list includes beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilya Pilipino Program (4Ps) and some 36,000 non-4Ps families who had qualified to receive the social amelioration fund.
Lydia del Rosario, CSWD officer, said they had processed some 66,600 applications for the program and had them validated with the assistance of the barangays based on a set of criteria which includes total income per household and employment status.
Del Rosario said they received the funds for the program amounting to P180 million on April 8, and that they are set to start their distribution of P5,000 for each beneficiary on April 16.
“Na-forward na sa atin ang pera, at magwi-withdraw on Wednesday (April 15) dahil uunahin ‘yong ibang munisipyo. Hopefully, we can start the distribution on Thursday (April 16) sa rural barangay, and Friday (April 17) to city residents,” del Rosario said.
Not For Everyone
The CSWD noted that only 76 percent of those who applied for the program were approved based on the criteria for receiving the social amelioration fund.
“Hindi kasama dito ang government employees (regular, contract-of-service, and job order employees), private employees, at mga senior citizens na may buwanang pension,” she said.
She said the P5,000 will be delivered “door-to-door” or in “distribution areas” where strict social distancing measures will be employed.
She added that the Philippine National Police (PNP) was asked to escort during the distribution and ensure the security and safety of the disbursing officials while simultaneously enforcing the ECQ guidelines.
“Kailangan nilang ihanda ang photocopy ng kanilang ID, at certification (copy of SAP form) para ma-verify na sila nga ang makakatanggap,” Del Rosario said.
Qualifiers
The CSWD said they processed the application based on the joint memorandum circular (JMC) issued by the national inter-agency task force (IATF).
Prioritization was based on the following matrix: 4Ps recipient, senior citizens with no monthly pension, persons with disability (PWD), pregnant women or those who had recently given birth, distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFW), urban poor or those who have no house, informal workers such as tricycle drivers, helpers, or vendors.
Eric Aborot, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) field officer, clarified that those who will receive the social amelioration from DSWD will no longer be qualified to receive from other government programs such as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and Department of Agriculture (DA).
“Meron ng mga informal workers ang nag-apply noon sa DOLE. Halimbawa, doon sila nabilang, hindi na sila makakatanggap sa DSWD,” he said.
The SAP would last for two months, based on the guidelines set by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the Department of Finance (DOF).
“First tranche for April pa lang itong P5,000. For example, ma-lift ang ECQ after April 30, hindi naman natin inaasahan na makakabalik na agad sa normal na pamumuhay ang mga tao, kaya may tulong pa din sila sa May,” Aborot added.
The SAP, drawn from the P275 billion budget, was the national government’s “stimulus fund” to ensure that the “poorest of the poor” will receive financial assistance while their employment was stalled during the ECQ period.
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