The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) said Sunday (August 30)  that its second tranche distribution of emergency cash subsidy has covered more than 13.6 million beneficiaries. 

DSWD Undersecretary Rene Glen Paje said the SAP 2 beneficiaries have received P81.3 billion worth of emergency cash subsidy.

“Sa atin pong second tranche, nasa halos 95 percent na po tayo. Mahigit P81.3 billion na ang ating naipamahagi sa pamamagitan ng manual at digital payout. Ang naging beneficiary po nito lahat ay higit kumulang 13.6 million na pamilyang beneficiary ng SAP,”  he told the DZBB in an interview. 

(For the second tranche, the distribution is almost 95-percent done. Over P81.3 billion has been distributed through manual and digital payout. The total number of beneficiaries is more or less 13.6 million family-beneficiaries of SAP.)

Paje said included in the agency’s latest list of SAP 2 recipients are over 1.3 million beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps); more than 6 million low-income, and non-4Ps recipients; 3.2 million waitlisted beneficiaries nationwide; 1.7 million waitlisted beneficiaries from the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) areas; 150, 695 Transport Network Vehicle Service (TNVS) and public utility vehicles (PUVs) drivers; and 33, 336 drivers from the ECQ areas. 

“Ngayon po ang payout ay  tuloy tuloy pa rin sapagkat mayroon pang mga natitirang beneficiaries na pilit nating inaabot, 'yung mga nasa mga malalayong lugar, 'yung geographically disadvantaged and  isolated areas , ganun din po ang lugar na walang access sa internet o signal. Patuloy po ang kawani ng DSWD na nanghahatid ng mga ayuda sa ating mga kababayan,” he assured the public. 

(The payout continues because we have to cover the remaining beneficiaries, especially those living in far-flung areas, geographically disadvantaged and  isolated areas, as well those areas who do not have Internet access or signal. The DSWD personnel continue to distribute the cash aid to our countrymen.)

When asked on the pronouncement of Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) that it has received reports that some beneficiaries used the SAP subsidy as a seed capital for illegal drug trade, Paje said the DSWD is "not equipped” to respond to such situation and it is leaving up to the Department of Interior and Local Government, Philippine National Police Criminal Investigation and Detection Group to investigate the matter. 

“Alam po natin na ang ating kababayan ay hindi natin makontrol lahat, ngunit may measures po tayo na ginagawa upang ma-validate ang mga ito. Kapag nasa kanila na ang pera ay hindi na natin kontrolado,” the DSWD official explained.

(We know that we cannot control our countrymen, but we have put in place measures to validate all these. Once they receive the cash aid, it is beyond our control.)

He said the DSWD sought the assistance of the local government units in validating whether or not the beneficiaries are eligible since they know their constituents.