4-M Poor Households To Get Gov't Subsidy

Four million poor households will be added to the list of the beneficiaries of the govern-ment’s emergency subsidy program upon the order of President Duterte, Malacañang announced yesterday.

- Genalyn D. Kabiling And Jun Ramirez

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the President wants to provide assistance to more people affected by the quarantine restrictions due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.

The government had earlier launched a ₱200-billion subsidy program for 18 million low-income families for the months of April and May. The relief distribution, however, has been marred by complaints of slow distribution and discrepancies in the lists of beneficiaries, among others.

“Dati 18 million lang dapat ang pagbibigyan, naging desisyon ni Presidente lahat po ng nangangailangan dapat bigyan, so nadagdagan pa po ‘yang 18 million na ‘yan ng — kung di ako nagkakamali — something like 4 million pa (around 18 million are supposed to be given aid but the President decided that everyone in need should be assisted. So we have added — if I’m not mistaken — 4 million to the 18 million beneficiaries),” Roque said in a television interview Friday.

“’Yan yung figure na nagugutom based on current data at hindi ‘yung 2015 data pa. So isa pang naging problema po ‘yan kasi 7 kinailangan maghabol ng mga pangalan,” he added.