Some 18,000 Social Amelioration Card (SAC) forms of beneficiaries for the second tranche distribution of emergency cash subsidies have yet to be uploaded by the local government units (LGUs), while around 70,000 names of SAP 2 beneficiaries remain unvalidated.
(MANILA BULLETIN)
This was the reason cited by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) over its failure to immediately complete the distribution of the second tranche of cash subsidies.
“For SAC uploading, we are still awaiting for some 18,000 names of beneficiaries and for validation which is being undertaken by LGUs. We still await for some 70,000 names of beneficiaries to be validated and all of these shall be uploaded and validated before going to the Central Office. These are the reasons why we have not yet completed to 100 percent of our target accomplishment,” DSWD Undersecretary Danilo Pamonag told the House Committee on Appropriations after Gabriela Women’s partylist Rep. Arlene Brosas scored the apparent slow distribution of the second tranche distribution of Social Amelioration Program (SAP).
DSWD Secretary Rolando Bautista said around 82.7 billion budget for the second tranche was already disbursed to over 13.8 million through direct payout and digital payment.
“As of today, we have attained 97 percent accomplishment rate,” he noted.
Pamonag expressed the agency’s commitment to cover the unserved beneficiaries for the second tranche “in due time.” The DSWD is targeting to distribute emergency cash subsidies to 4.1 million family-beneficiaries.
“We are very optimistic that we will be able to serve all beneficiaries in due time as necessary documentary requirements are now being processed at the Centra Office for the subsequent transfer to all target beneficiaries through our FSPs or either through direct cash payout,” he said.
Bautista apprised the panel that the DSWD has been given P207.6 billion for the first and second phase implementation of SAP.
Of the total amount, P197 billion had been released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), while P10.6 billion came from the re-aligned budget of the DSWD.
He noted that for the first tranche, the DSWD and the LGUs had covered 99.55 percent of the 17.9 million target family beneficiaries. According to him, they utilized 99.49 percent of P100.4 billion budget allocated for the first tranche,
The 11 areas covered by SAP 2 are Region III (Central Luzon) , except Aurora province, the NCR; Region IV-A (CALABARZON) ; Benguet; Pangasinan; Iloilo; Cebu Province; Bacolod City; Davao City, Albay province and Zamboanga City.
Bautista said their proposed budget for 2021 is P169.29 billion, which is higher by just 4.45 percent from the previous year's budget.
“The utilization rate of the department for 2019 under regular fund is 94.26 percent and for 2020 funds, we have obligated 40 percent of the total of P161.9 billion appropriations, as of August 31, 2020,” he reported to the panel.