Vice President Leni Robredo said the release of the funds for the government's anti-communist insurgency task force should be suspended and instead be used to fund the cash assistance program for families who will be affected by the two-week enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Metro Manila.

Robredo made the statement a day before the National Capital Region (NCR) shifted to ECQ from August 6 to 20, 2021.

In a statement, Vice President Robredo said the P19-billion budget of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) should be suspended until the country has recovered from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

"Habang hindi pa tayo nakakaahon mula sa pandemya, ipagpaliban muna natin ito at tiyakin na walang Pilipinong magugutom (Until we recover from the pandemic, we should suspend the release of its budget and make sure that no Filipino will go hungry)," she said Thursday, August 5.

"Madaming nangangailangan ng tulong natin, lalo na ‘yung ECQ-affected families (Many people need our help, especially the families affected by the ECQ)," she added.

The Vice President echoed the sentiments of Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon who criticized the government for prioritizing anti-insurgency over the ayuda or financial assistance.

She cited the need for the government to increase the budget for cash aid to help families cover their needs for food, electricity, and water bills, among others.

"We need to make sure the cash grant will reach each one of them, para kahit papaano maibsan ‘yung paghihirap nila (so we can somehow relieve them of their suffering),” the Vice President said.

According to Robredo, there were 4.2 million Filipino families who experienced involuntary hunger in May and 3.7 million unemployed Filipinos in June.

Malacañang has assured affected residents that they will receive cash assistance worth P1,000 or up to P4,000 per family.