Cayetano 10k program beneficiaries reach 1,000 mark

Former House speaker and Taguig Representative Alan Peter Cayetano on Saturday, May 29, disclosed that their "Sampung Libong Pag-asa" initiative has the 1,000 mark with 550 beneficiaries from the province of Bulacan and other parts of the country receiving P10,000 in cash assistance.

The latest beneficiaries came from five districts of Bulacan, while 50 beneficiaries were picked from the comments section in Cayetano’s official Facebook page.

“Ngayong pandemic, sa pag-iikot namin, extraordinary ‘yung paghihirap ng tao (As we moved around during the pandemic, we saw the extraordinary suffering of the people. So we were really thinking of ways we could help)," Cayetano said during the event.

‘’So when we tried it, we just selected a few and we were surprised to find that it wasn’t just the poor who were suffering but even the middle class,’’ he added.

Around 177 beneficiaries had received their advanced payout on May 26 from Bulacan 1st District Rep. Jose Antonio “Kuya” Sy-Alvarado and Bulacan Vice Governor Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado.

In Friday’s Sampung Libong Pag-asa Program, Cayetano was joined by Taguig 2nd District Rep. Ma. Laarni “Lani” Cayetano, Bulacan 1st District Rep. Jose Antonio “Kuya” Alvarado, Bulacan Vice Governor Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado, Bulacan 3rd District Rep. Lorna Silverio, Bocaue Vice Mayor Alvin Cotaco and Bocaue Municipal Council, Marilao Mayor Ricardo Silvestre, San Jose del Monte City Lone District Rep. Florida Robes, and San Jose del Monte City Mayor Arthur Robes.

The program, initiated by Cayetano, his allies in Congress, was launched last May 1 amid their push for the "10K Ayuda Bill" in the House of Representatives, which aims to provide each Filipino family with P10,000 cash assistance they can use to buy food, pay for water and electricity, or start a small business.

While the proposed Bayanihan 3 was approved on second reading this week, the provision on the distribution of the P10,000 cash assistance was not included in the bill.