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Millions of poor families, who were affected by novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) crisis, will no longer be able to avail of the second tranche of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).
This after President Rodrigo R. Duterte finally approved the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) to limit the coverage of the second tranche of SAP benefits to areas that will remain under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ ) up to May 31, 2020.
“For the second month [of the SAP implementation], only those who live in areas within ECQ will get assistance. Those from from the GCQ [general community quarantine] will no longer get the aid, ”Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said during an online press briefing on Tuesday.
Currently, IATF has recommended that only the National Capital Region (NCR), province of Laguna and City of Cebu remain under a “modified” ECQ until the end of the month.
SAP is a P200-billion government program, which provides a cash aid, which would range between P5,000 to P8,000, to 18 million poor families nationwide for two months.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) released half of the SAP budget last month to be distributed to its qualified beneficiaries, while remaining P100 billion was supposed to released this month to benefit the same beneficiaries.
Following the new decision of the IATF, Roque explained the budget for the second tranche of SAP will be use for poor families, who are still living in ECQ areas, as well as another 5 million other families, who were not part of the first tranche of SAP implementation.
Second tranche distribution
In separate online press briefing, Social Welfare secretary Rolando Bautista said they will select the additional 5 million SAP beneficiaries using the list of “left out” families, which were submitted by LGUs.
He said the second tranche of SAP will now be distributed by DSWD in coordination with with Armed Forces of the Philippine (AFP) and the Department of National Defense (DND) upon the instruction of the President.
Duterte issued the directive on Monday supposedly to prevent the misuse of the SAP fund by unscrupulous LGUs.
Kilusang Mayo Uno criticized the involvement of AFP in the SAP implementation, which it said is “not exactly a graft-free agency to have a role in the SAP distribution.”
“Social amelioration is civilian duty; the military should not be involved in this, ”KMU chair Elmer Labog said in a statement.
Investigation period
Roque said the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) has started investigating 183 cases, which involved LGUs, which allegedly distributed cash aid to unqualified beneficiaries.
He said this in compliance to the Duterte’s orders for authorities to hold erring local officials, who misused the SAP fund, to serve as an example to other LGUs not to engage in a similar act.
Bautista said the DILG will also look into the accountability of the LGUs, which failed to meet the deadline in distributing the SAP beneficiaries.
As of May 11, DSWD reported 1,035 of the 1,632 LGUs were already able to complete the distribution of the first tranche of SAP. A more updated data from the DILG at 1,265.
Of the said LGUs, Bautista said only 140 have complied with the mandatory submission of the liquidation reports and encoded list of beneficiaries to ensure their they used their SAP budget correctly.
He said LGUs, which will fail to comply may be issued a show cause order by DILG.
