ILOILO CITY -- The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD-6) has once again clarified that politicians in Western Visayas region cannot remove beneficiaries from any of its programs.
“Only DSWD has the authority to remove beneficiaries from the list. No politician can delist (beneficiaries) from our programs,” emphasized Ma. Evelyn Macapobre, DSWD regional director for Western Visayas.
Macapobre made the clarification in reaction to reports the DSWD regional office has received that politicians have allegedly threatened to remove potential voters, who are beneficiaries of various DSWD programs, from the DSWD list.
“DSWD remains apolitical and we will continue with our service delivery to the people with whom we owe allegiance to,” added Macapobre.
In particular, DSWD-6 Assistant Regional Director for Administration Delia Bagolcol said that most of the reported threats of politicians involve the conditional cash transfer program or the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps).
Bagolcol though would not name the politicians in Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo, and Negros Occidental provinces who are allegedly using DSWD’s programs as part of their campaign platform for the May 9 elections.
The DSWD stressed that the only reason by which a DSWD beneficiary can be removed from the list is non-compliance.
For 4Ps beneficiaries, families cannot be removed as long as they comply with the program’s rules. This includes children being enrolled and having school attendance of about 85 percent in school; regularly getting health check-ups and deworming; and parents attending monthly sessions.
Aside from the 4Ps, the DSWD-6 also received reports that indigent senior citizens are also getting threats of removal from the social pension program.