'Saan makakarating ang P1,000?': Farmers' group says proposed aid not enough
A farmers’ group on Sunday, April 4, decried the meager financial assistance to be distributed to families affected by the lockdown in Greater Metro Manila area.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said that the P1,000 assistance, which may come in-kind or cash, was not even enough to buy a week's worth of food and other needs for a family of four.
“Saan makakarating ang P1,000? (Where will a P1,000 go?),” the KMP said in a statement.
“Katumbas lang ito ng tatlong araw na badyet sa pagkain para sa pamilyang may apat na myembro. Tipid na tipid pa ito. Paano pa ang ibang pangangailangan? (This is only the equivalent of a three -day food budget for a family of four. How about other needs?),” it added.
The group said the government must stop treating low-income Filipinos in urgent need of assistance as “beggars and vagrants asking for alms.”
It added that the extended Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) will be just a prolonged burden to Filipinos if the most immediate demands of aid and strengthening of the collapsing health care are not addressed.
“Kulang ng siyam na libo sa hinihinging P10,000 na ayuda ang ibibigay ng gobyerno. Kulang na nga, delayed at installment pa (The financial aid that the government will provide less than P9,000 of the requested P10,000 aid. It is already lacking, delayed and in installments,” said KMP chairperson Danilo Ramos.
The government has earmarked about P23 billion for the distribution of assistance to low-income beneficiaries affected by the imposition of ECQ.
Aside from the P10,000 cash aid, KMP is also demanding for P15,000 production subsidy for farmers and fishers to help them with unhampered farming, fishing, and food production to ensure food supply amid the pandemic.