Bayan Muna party-list Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate on Monday called out the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for spending only a quarter of its budget or 25.7% for the pension of indigent senior citizens with only four months to go this year.
Zarate said it is unacceptable for the department to delay the “meager stipend” for the elderly.
“I am calling out DSWD on this dahil the budget is there. Binigay sa kanila, as of now they are trying to catch up. Time is running out for elderly people. Dapat pabilisin ang pag release nito,” said Zarate.
(The budget is given to them. They should fast track its release.)
In response to Zarate, DSWD Director of Financial Management Service Wayne Belizar confirmed that 25.7% of social pension funds have so far been obligated.
He said the department is also trying to fast track the disbursement of the social pension through the issuance of cash cards.
“Based on our records, the allotment that remains in 2021 for soc(ial) pen(sion) is only about P575.86 million and we already have been obligated P146.699 million so that’s 25.7%,” said Belizar.
“We are trying to fast track the social pension beneficiaries of the department through the use of cash cards. Once we are able to complete this payout mechanism then it would be easier for the department to actually disburse and fully provide these stipends for elderly beneficiaries,” he added.
Zarate also questioned the department over the Commission on Audit report in 2020 that indicated only 41,544 out of 276,807 targeted seniors received their social pension.
The lawmaker lamented the failure to disburse this amount, adding that senior citizens, the most vulnerable in this pandemic, must receive their aid that is mandated by the law.
“Isa sa pinakakawawa ang senior citizens dahil nakakulong sila this past year. Hindi sila makalabas dahil sa pandemya tapos hindi pa sila nabibigyan ng tamang ayuda sa ating pamahalaan,” the solon said.
(Seniors are very vulnerable. They could not go out during the pandemic and yet they are still not receiving their aid from the government.)
“Can you imagine that 15% only received their pension during their calendar year this 2020?” he added.
He also took issue with backlogs on social pension since 2019, as cited in the COA report.
“Tinatanong ko nga kung ilan na ba ang backlogs 2019, according to COA report may backlogs pa sila na hindi na naibibigay sa elderly people. Malamang ‘yung iba diyan namatay na rin na hindi nila nareceive ang social pension,” Zarate added.
(I am asking whether the backlogs were already accounted for, according to the COA report, they still have backlogs that were not given to elderly people. Maybe some of them have died without receiving their stipend.)
Quarterly by 2022
Negros Oriental Representative Jocelyn Sy Limkaichong then asked DSWD if the social pension will be distributed quarterly instead of every six months starting next year.
DSWD Chief Rolando Bautista responded that they will revert back to the quarterly disbursement of social pension in 2022.
He also explained that they distributed the stipends bi-semester because of lack of personnel on the ground during the pandemic.
“Ang sitwasyon kasi noon nagkaroon kami ng cap 5% in the personnel on the ground apparently na-limit yung pag-hire namin ng personnel kaya we cannot cover that,” Bautista said.
(Our situation back then is that we had a cap of 5% on personnel on the ground. Apparently, it limited our hiring of personnel so we could not cover all the disbursement.)
DSWD is proposing a P189.12 billion budget for 2022, much higher than P174.857 billion in the 2021 General Appropriations Act or the 2021 national budget.—LDF, GMA News
DSWD hit for slow disbursement of indigent seniors’ pension
Source: Pinoy Hub News
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