'We did not learn,' Robredo says on aid distribution
Considering that local government units (LGUs) already encountered problems with cash aid distribution last year, it baffles Vice President Leni Robredo why the same thing is happening today.
(Jansen Romero / MANILA BULLETIN FILE PHOTO)
In her weekly radio show with broadcaster Ely Saludar, Robredo was reacting to reports that LGUs are having a hard time distributing the P1,000 to P4,000 cash assistance to impoverished households under the National Capital Region Plus (NCR Plus) bubble, which includes the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal, and Laguna.
Some beneficiaries said they have to wait in line for hours to receive their “ayuda.”
“Per LGU, iba-iba ang experience pero, Ka Ely, parang di na tayo natututo. Di na tayo natututo paano aayusin ito kasi last year ganito din naging problema (Per LGU, they have different experience but, Ka Ely, it’s like we did not learn. We did not learn how to fix this because last year, this is also our problem),” Robredo said.
After the country was put in lockdown last year, the national government directed the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to oversee the distribution of the cash assistance under the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) to the beneficiaries.
However, some said they have not received their SAP benefits despite being on the barangay’s list of beneficiaries.
“Dapat hanapin na talaga ng sistema yung ganito lalo na ngayon pandemic. Kapag hindi maayos ‘yung distribution, baka magkahawaan pa dun sa linya (We should find a system for this especially during the pandemic. If the distribution is not orderly, there will be virus transmission while waiting in line),” Robredo said.
She added it should be up to LGUs and barangays how best to distribute the aid since they know their constituents better.
Robredo commended some LGUs like Pasig that went house-to-house while others like Valenzuela City conducted an orderly distribution of the aid by following a pre-announced schedule.
She lamented that barangays are sometimes not to blame because the lack of resources is making it hard for them to distribute the aid to the listed beneficiaries.
In fact, Robredo said, some barangays do not want to be the central point of the distribution anymore because the non-recipients are blaming them.
The vice president earlier called on the government to provide assistance to the NCR Plus bubble, which has been put under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) since Monday, March 29, so non-essential workers will not need to go outside their homes to provide food for their families.
She said this will reduce the chances of people going out of their homes and adding to the transmission of the virus.