Sinimulan nang ipamahagi ang ayudang Emergency Subsidy mula sa Social Amelioration Program (SAP) para sa mga benepisyaryo ng Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program na walang cash card o ATM cards.

Sa buong Rehiyon IX, 7,723 ang mga benepisyaryo na walang ATM na target maabutan ng emergency subsidy. Aabot ang ayudang ito sa halagang PHP 28,188,950.

Bawat isang pamilya ay nakatanggap ng Php 3,650 na halaga ng ayuda. Ito ay dagdag sa kanilang regular na health grant (P750) at rice subsidy (P600) na ibibigay sa mga susunod na araw. Kung susumahin, Php 5,000 ayuda ang kanilang natanggap para sa isang buwan.

Sa datos ng 4Ps kahapon (Mayo 10), tinatayang 6,439 na pamilya na ang nabigyan ng ayuda. 1,281 sa mga ito ay mula sa Zamboanga City, 1,636 naman ang mula sa Zamboanga del Norte, 1,842 ang sa Zamboanga del Sur, at 1,680 naman ay mula sa Zamboanga Sibugay.

Isusunod naman ngayong araw ang pamamahagi ng ayuda sa bayan ng Isabela, Basilan at magpapatuloy din ang distribusyon para sa mga unclaimed o mga hindi pa nakakuha ng ayuda sa iba pang mga probinsya sa Zamboanga Peninsula.

Dahil walang ATM ang mga benepisyaryo, direktang bumababa ang mga kawani ng DSWD sa bawat barangay upang iabot ang nasabing ayuda.

“Una na nating nabigyan ng ayuda ang mga benepisyaryo na may hawak na ATM noong nakaraang buwan pa dahil mas madali nang ipasok sa kanilang mga ATM yun. Ngayon naman, tayo mismo ang gagawa ng payout pero syempre sisiguraduhin nating maayos ito,” ani ng Regional Program Coordinator ng 4Ps sa Region 9 na si Flordeliza Atuy.

Ayon sa programa, naging maayos ang pagsasagawa ng payout o distribusyon ng ayuda dahil sa pagsunod sa mga panuntunan upang makaiwas sa pagkalat ng virus.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the lead agency that implements the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) pursuant to Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, says that not all families will be given provision by the program.

The Memorandum Circular No. 9 or omnibus guidelines state that the emergency subsidy shall be given to low-income families, assessed to be most affected by the imposition of community quarantine, given their existing life situations or circumstances.

Target beneficiaries shall include 4Ps beneficiaries, families with low income including those who are not currently recipients of the 4Ps, informal economy workers, indigent families of Indigenous Peoples, and other vulnerable groups.

“As much as we want to help all families that are affected by the implementation of the ECQ (Enhanced Community Quarantine), we are bounded by guidelines that are our basis for doing what should be done,” DSWD-9 OIC-Regional Director Fatima S. Caminan said.

Not eligible to receive SAP grants are those families who have members that work in the government such as elected and appointed government officials, personnel contracted in any National Government Agency (NGA), Government –owned and Controlled Corporation (GOCC), and Local Government Units (LGU).

Employees in the private sector, formal economy workers, including those who work for GOCCs without original charters, regardless of the existence of employee-employer relationship, and regardless of the fact that they are receiving salary or wage are likewise excluded in the provision of SAP.

Retired individuals who are receiving pension and their immediate families are also not included in the program.

Region IX has 726,259 families to be covered by SAP. 323,074 of which are 4Ps family beneficiaries and 403,185 families are non-Pantawid beneficiaries who are qualified to receive the SAP cash subsidy based on the omnibus guidelines.

To date, DSWD Field Office 9 has already transferred a total amount of Php 1,951,158,000.00 to sixty six (67) LGUs in Region IX or about 98% of the total funding requirement.

Queries and complaints on inclusion and/or exclusion can be reported to the hotline service center of the DSWD through 0906-512-4841 (Globe) and 0961-721-0948 (Smart).

Following the implementation of the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the regional office in Zamboanga Peninsula has activated an Agency Operation Center (AOC) to oversee and address all concerns with regards to carrying out the program.

The establishment of the AOC was activated to serve as a command facility to monitor and coordinate the implementation of the Department’s Social Amelioration Program or the provision of emergency subsidy to the most affected families and individuals in areas under community quarantine.

Consequently, the Department has also launched a hotline center which will capture and answer all inquiries, refer actions on complaints and grievances, and clarify matters to the public about the said program.

The hotline center is managed by the committee on Client Support as part of the Agency Operation Center.

The hotline numbers are open to all networks including Globe and Smart Telecom and are ready to receive calls daily from 9 AM to 5 PM.

As of its launching yesterday, the hotline center was able to respond to more than 100 clients from across the region.

The top three concerns received are mainly on (1) eligibility to the program; (2) under coverage or those who were not administered Social Amelioration Card (SAC); and (3) inquiries on schedule of SAP orientation and distribution of SAC in their barangays.

Beneficiaries of the country’s conditional cash transfer program, the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, implemented by the DSWD may face delistment for claiming double emergency subsidy under the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).

Based on the implementing rules and regulations of the program, the circumstance of claiming additional SAP grants constitutes fraud and unbecoming demeanor of a beneficiary which grounds him/her to be sanctioned and dealt with administratively.

“The Department sees to it that there will be no duplicity in the receiving of Social Amelioration grants especially with our program beneficiaries. We trust that our beneficiaries will also help us uphold transparency and integrity in implementing our programs and services,” DSWD-9 OIC Regional Director Fatima S. Caminan said.

It can be recalled that the beneficiaries of the 4Ps program have already received their emergency subsidy under the SAP since April 04, 2020.

The beneficiaries have received an emergency subsidy worth Php 3,650 on top of their regular grants worth Php 750 (health) and Php 600 (rice subsidy) which in total sums up to Php 5,000 grants.

As of this date, the Department has not yet received any reports of double claim by a 4Ps beneficiary.

Should there be a case on which a beneficiary was able to receive additional 5k SAP grant, the Department urges the public to report it immediately to the grievance hotline of the program at 0927-161-3818.

The public may also directly report a case to the city/municipal links assigned in their area for immediate validation.

Other forms of communication with the DSWD are also open such as through their official Facebook Page (DSWD Region IX) and regional website https://fo9.dswd.gov.ph/

Tindera sa isang 24/7 Convenience Store si Janet Denolan Gomez, 33, tubong Capase, Roxas, Zamboanga del Norte. Gabi-gabi siyang pumapasok sa trabaho mula alas 7 ng gabi hanggang alas 7 ng umaga. Di inaalintana ang pagod at puyat, mairaos lang ang pang araw-araw na gastusin ng kanyang maliit na pamilya.

May dalawang anak si Janet na pawang mga bata pa –ang panganay niyang anak na si RJ ay 12 años na at nasa Grade 7, samantalang ang pangalawa niyang anak na si Jeannie Rose ay 9 na taong gulang pa lang at nasa Grade 4 naman.

Hiwalay sa asawa si Janet at siya na lang ang tanging kumakayod para bumuhay sa kanyang mga anak.

Mula nang maipatupad ang Community Quarantine bilang paraan ng gobyerno upang maiwasan ang hawaan ng virus na COVID-19 sa bansa, nawalan na rin ng pang hanapbuhay si Janet dahil pansamantalang nagsara ang tindahang pinapasukan nito.

Dahil kabilang si Janet sa informal economy workers, apektado ito ng No Work, No Pay.

Masakit man sa kanyang loob, kinailangang gamitin ni Janet ang kakaunti nitong ipon upang maitawid ang kanilang pang araw-araw sa gitna ng quarantine.

Halos tatlong linggong nagtipid si Janet upang mapagkasya ang kanyang ang ipon sa araw-araw na gastusin. Walang kasiguraduhan kung may makakain pa sila kinabukasan.

Hanggang sa mabalitaan niya ang tulong para sa mga miyembro ng 4Ps kung saan kabilang si Janet. Ito ay ang Social Amelioration Program (SAP), isang programa na naglalayong matugunan ang pangangailangan ng mga bulnerableng sektor ng lipunan sa gitna ng implementasyon ng Enhanced Community Quarantine sa gitna ng banta ng COVID-19.

Ayon sa programang ito, makakakuha ng hindi hihigit sa Php 5,000.00 ayuda ang bawat miyembro ng 4Ps bilang emergency subsidy kasabay ng regular na natatanggap nito mula sa programa.

Nang makuha ni Janet ang SAP, agad siyang tumungo sa pamilihan upang bumili ng mga pagkain at iba pang gamit. Habang namimili, naalala niya ang kanyang 2 anak kaya naisipan niyang bumili ng itlog para sa mga ito.

Tuwang-tuwa ang mga bata sapagkat unang pagkakataon nilang makakain ng itlog ng pugo.

Malaki ang naging pasasalamat ni Janet sa DSWD at 4Ps dahil sa nalasap nitong tulong mula sa Social Amelioration Program. Ipinakita pa niya ang mga nabili niyang grocery.

“Grocery namin.. Malaking pasalamat ko talaga sa DSWD kasi napakalaking tulong nito sa akin lalo’t ako na lang mag-isa ang bumubuhay sa dalawa kong anak.. Kung wala ito, ewan ko kung saan ako kukuha ng pangkain namin,” ika ni Janet sa Facebook Page ng Pantawid Pamilya Region IX.

Isa lamang si Janet sa 289,116 na pamilya sa buong Zamboanga Peninsula na nakatanggap ng SAP sa ilalim ng Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program. Umaabot sa Php 1,055,273,400.00 ang halaga ng emergency subsidy na naibigay ng programa sa mga benepisyaryo nito ngayong panahon ng quarantine. Unang bahagi pa lamang ito ng ayudang ipagkakaloob sa mga benepisyaryo sa loob ng dalawang buwan.

Pursuant to Republic Act 11469 or the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act, beneficiaries of the country’s conditional cash transfer program will be receiving emergency subsidy under the Social Amelioration Program as top up to their regular cash grants from 4Ps.

The said program is government’s help for the poor and most vulnerable sectors to mitigate the effects brought by the strict implementation of the Enhanced Community Quarantine in majority of cities and municipalities due to the health emergency on COVID-19.

The provision of Emergency Subsidy will be done in 2 tranches, the first of which has already been credited to the beneficiaries’ ATM accounts last April 03, 2020 and the 2^nd tranche will be credited on another schedule.

For Region IX, the prescribed amount of emergency subsidy is Php 5,000 based on the region’s minimum wage level.

This means that each 4Ps household will be able to receive Php 3,650 on top of the Php 750 health grant and Php 600 rice subsidy for the month of April.

The emergency subsidy, health grant, and rice subsidy will compose the Php 5,000 Social Amelioration Program grant for the Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries.

The beneficiaries are encouraged to coordinate with their city/municipal links for the withdrawal of their cash grants and emergency subsidy while observing the protocols on social distancing and other preventive measures to avoid possible transmission of the corona virus.

Earlier, the Department has already credited the Period 6 (December 2019 and January 2020) grants of the beneficiaries to those who hold EMV-activated cash cards.

For beneficiaries without cash cards, the Department is now coordinating with LandBank of the Philippines and Local Government Units for the release of the formers’ regular grants and emergency subsidy.

Meanwhile, with the proliferation of fake news on the internet, the Department urges beneficiaries to on rely information coming from reliable sources only such as from established news authorities, governments’ website and social media accounts.

Several members of the country’s conditional cash transfer program have line up today at various LandBank ATM branches and authorized servicing outlets for the withdrawal of their cash grants under the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

The Department has coordinated with the Local Government Unit down to the barangay level to facilitate an organized withdrawal of cash grants adhering to the rules and policies on the prevention of COVID-19 transmission.

“It is deemed imperative for us as a social welfare agency to make withdrawal of cash grants available for the beneficiaries especially now that we are facing a crisis. This is a safety net measure for our beneficiaries following the mandated enhanced community quarantine,” DSWD-9 OIC-Regional Director Fatima S. Caminan said.

Prior to this, the DSWD has announced that Landbank of the Philippines (LBP) will credit the cash grants of the beneficiaries into to their individual EMV-activated cash cards starting March 24. However, this will only be for the beneficiaries under the Modified Conditional Cash Transfer (MCCT). The Department, together with the LBP, targets to credit the cash grants of the Regular Conditional Cash Transfer (RCCT) members by April.

 PREVENTIVE MEASURES VS MASS GATHERINGS

Ensuring the safety of the beneficiaries, field staff of the DSWD were deployed in various LBP branches, ATM stations, and Point of System (POS) to secure the observance of policies in the prevention of COVID-19 such as maintaining physical distance, wearing face mask and other protective gears, use of alcohol and sanitizers, proper hand-washing with soap, and changing of clothes upon arriving home.

In the municipality of Titay in Zamboanga Sibugay, as agreed during the meeting with the Municipal Administrator, Chief of Police, and LBP staff, all beneficiaries will be ferried to and from their residences using police mobile as all public transport are suspended.

Health workers and barangay officials are also on the lookout to avoid mass gatherings and crowd control. Attendance and participation of senior citizens, pregnant women, children, those with fever, cough, and/or colds are discouraged in the withdrawal of cash grants.

Beneficiaries of the MCCT have received educational and health grants for Period 6 (December 2019 and January 2020). In addition, they also received rice subsidy for 2 months.

CASH CARD WITHDRAWALS IN VARIOUS AREAS

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has recently declared suspension of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program activities amid crisis facing covid-19.

This is after DSWD Secretary Hon. Rolando Bautista, in accordance to the recommendation of the Inter-Agency Task Force, issued the Advisory No. 1 stating that all activities needing mass gatherings shall be temporarily suspended until April 14.

According to the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of the Republic Act 11310, more popuparly known as the 4Ps Act, the Secretary of the Department may suspend program activities through a declaration of “force majeure.”

This is to ensure the health and safety of 4Ps beneficiaries particularly that of more vulnerable sectors such as the senior citizens, children, and those with prior sickness, and the DSWD staff as well.

The suspension includes all cash card distributions, compliance to program conditionalities such as children’s attendance to school and regular health checkups.

In addition, the conduct of monthly gathering of the beneficiaries during Family Development Sessions (FDS) shall likewise be temporarily suspended.

In consideration of the “force majeure” situation, beneficiaries will still be able to receive their cash grants for the month of February and March.

However, all program beneficiaries are encouraged to continue their usual chores such as maintaining their backyard gardens to ensure healthy food for the family, encourage their children to read and study at home while classes are suspended, keeping their home and environment clean, and only seek information from reliable sources.

4Ps is a human capital investment of the national government that aims to reduce poverty by providing assistance to poor households for education and health. As of to date, the program has 287,000 active beneficiaries in Region IX and 4 million household beneficiaries nationwide.