MEMBERS of the Senate and the House of Representatives continue to wrangle, this time over an aid program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) allegedly being used to woo poor families to support the people's initiative being pushed by congressmen to amend the Constitution.
Sen. Maria Josefa Imelda "Imee" Marcos questioned the validity of the Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita (AKAP), which she said was brought to her attention through a "text blast" last Friday.
Sen. Maria Josefa Imelda "Imee" Marcos (PHOTO: MIKE ALQUINTO)"All soft project requests will pass through the Office of the Speaker. There's a new one, AKAP, which is almost the same as the AICS. The text blast was the first time I heard of the project AKAP," Marcos said during the Kapihan sa Manila Bay on Wednesday.
"I was really surprised; what is that AKAP? So, I went to the DSWD people to ask even before the hearing yesterday. They were also confused," she added.
Senior Deputy Speaker and Pampanga 3rd District Rep. Aurelio "Dong" Gonzales Jr., however, said it was "absurd" for senators to question AKAP after approving it.
"AKAP is part of the 2024 national budget. The Senate gave its stamp of approval on AKAP when it passed the then-proposed P5.768-trillion outlay for this year in plenary last November 28," Gonzales said in a statement on Wednesday.
"It would be absurd now for senators to be questioning the AKAP and other assistance funds included in the national budget and administered by the Department of Social and Welfare Development (DSWD) because they approved it," he added, noting questioning the 2024 budget would mean questioning the decision of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to sign the bill into law.
In a news conference on Wednesday, 1-Rider Party-list Rep. Ramon Rodrigo Gutierrez said they were shocked to find out that senators were unaware of AKAP.
Gonzales said the House of Representatives had no hand in releasing funds for AKAP.
"It is the DSWD that has sole authority over these funds. That is clear in the budget law," he said.
Gonzales, who was part of the bicameral conference committee on the 2024 budget, said that Senator Marcos signed the bicameral report on the 2024 budget.
Ako Bikol Rep. Elizaldy Co said that AKAP was created to aid the "near-poor" Filipinos affected by inflation, giving each one-time P5,000 financial aid.
Co said that AKAP funds will be distributed strictly in line with the provisions of the 2024 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
DSWD Secretary Rexlon Gatchalian defined "near poor" as minimum-wage earners who are sensitive to economic shocks such as excessive inflation, which could easily push them back into poverty.
Gatchalian said DSWD officials met with the Philippine Statistics Authority in the third quarter of 2023 to formulate aid programs for the "near poor" sector.
"We were already exploring programs that will provide a safety net for those classified as 'near poor,'" he said.
Marcos said the program was only included in the DSWD budget for 2024 right after a legislative bicameral meeting, which she said turned into a photo opportunity instead of a discussion of the project.
She said her investigation of AKAP revealed "very contradicting" items, one of which was a document saying that money would be disbursed to local government units (LGUs) as a prize for having met or surpassed the target 3 percent of the total registered voters to sign for Charter change.
The document mentioned that "the primary purpose is the provision of rice to meet the nutritional requirements. The LGUs will effect the transfer of funds. But the program may also provide direct financial assistance to cover the payment of essential goods."
Marcos said the program has a P60 billion budget.
"Whether it's being used for the PI or not, it's a humongous insertion that should be as a line item, clearly defined as a project or program of the concerned department," she said.
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