BY VICTOR REYES and JOCELYN MONTEMAYOR
THE Philippine National Police has charged ninety-six more barangay officials for involvement in irregularities in the distribution of the April tranche of the emergency cash assistance under the government’s Social Amelioration Program (SAP), Interior Secretary Eduardo Año said yesterday.
The number brings to 397 the number of erring barangay officials so far charged by the PNP Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) before various prosecutors offices of the Department of Justice.
The Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) said a total of 663 were initially investigated for various offenses.
“Of the total 663 individuals, so far, we have filed criminal cases against 397 of them,” Año said.
As of June 3, there were only 301 barangay officials charged for SAP-related irregularities.
Año said more cases are due to be filed against barangay leaders in the next few days as the PNP is still investigating 67 more cases.
“Corruption is like COVID 19. It is a disease that needs to be stamped out before it infects more people. And so long as it’s there, the DILG and the PNP will not stop until we have charged each and every individual involved in anomalous SAP transactions,” said Año.
Año assured that the DILG will pursue cases against those who have violated the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act, Bayanihan Act, and the law on Reporting of Communicable Disease during a pandemic.
“Marami pang kasunod ito. Ang datos na ito ay mula April 1 hanggang June 16 pa lamang kaya doon sa mga gumawa ng kalokohan noong unang pamimigay ng SAP, sinasabi ko sa inyo na hindi kayo makakalusot (More cases will follow. This data is from April 11 to June 16 only, thus those who were engaged in irregularities during the first tranche of SAP, I am telling you that you are not going to get away from this),” he said.
Officials earlier said the offenses committed by barangay officials include taking portions of the SAP assistance given to beneficiaries and inclusion of unqualified relatives and friends as SAP beneficiaries.
MAY CASH AID
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday kicked off the distribution of the second tranche of the SAP in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with the delivery of the cash aid for poor families who were waitlisted or left out in the first payout.
DSWD Undersecretary Ernesto Gaviola, CAR Regional Director Leo Quintalla and spokeswoman Irene Dumlao led the distribution of the P5,500 payout for the waitlisted families in Kabanagan in Benguet and in Baguio City.
The agency also turned over P4.035 million of cash donation that were deducted from the May and June payroll of all DSWD willing personnel which were given to the Benguet General Hospital in La Trinidad to help the medical facility respond to the needs of COVID-19 patients and its medical frontliners.
Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista said for the SAP payout, 266 families from Kabangan and 219 families from Baguio City received the emergency subsidy.
Bautista said last week, the DSWD had also released P6.7 billion to 1.3 million Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino program (4Ps) beneficiaries as part of the second tranche.
He said the release of the rest of the payout will depend on how quick the LGUs had completed the release of the first tranche and the submission of their liquidation reports. A total of 1,166 LGUs had already completed their liquidation report while 237 had submitted partial reports.
Presidential spokesman Harry Roque said the government would determine what type of assistance it can extend to low income families in Cebu City and Talisay City after they were placed under the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) and modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ), respectively, from June 16 to 30.
Roque said the government is aware that the stricter lockdown in these cities would also mean another work stoppage and loss of livelihood for many families.
“Sa Bayanihan Law po limitado sa dalawang tranches iyan at sigurado naman po na ang buong siyudad ng Cebu at Talisay ay mabibigyan po ng pangalawang ayuda sang-ayon sa Bayanihan Law (The Bayanihan Law is limited to two tranches and I am sure the cities of Cebu at Talisay would be given aid according to the Bayanihan Law),” he said.
DILG undersecrtary and spokesman Jonathan Malaya said they are hoping to complete the distribution of the May cash subsidy on or before June 23, two days before the expiration of the Bayanihan Act.
President Duterte, in his 12th report to Congress, said the DSWD had already distributed P99.827 billion to 17.654 million low income families, 4Ps members and public utility and transport network vehicle services drivers as of June 12.
The President said the government had also released: P1.568 billion to 153,322 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) under the Department of Labor and Employment’s COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP) Abot-Kamay ang Pagtulong (AKAP); P3 billion to 591,246 beneficiaries under the Department of Agriculture’s Financial Subsidy for Rice Farmers (FRSF) program, of which 415,738 had already received their cash aid through the Land Bank of the Philippines as of June 9 while the rest has yet to collect the subsidy; P44 billion under the Small Business Wage Subsidy program where P3.05 million employees received the first tranche worth P22.78 billion, and 2.96 million middle-income workers received the second tranche worth P21.24 billion; P3.892 billion to 191 local government units (LGUs) under the Bayanihan grant to LGUs; and P203 million to 3,608 people under the Department of Trade and Industry’s livelihood seedling program.