Lawmakers from the upper chamber of Congress adopted a resolution on Monday, urging the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to release P83-billion in funds to help victims of recent typhoons and families still struggling to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Through the Senate Resolution No. 574, solons have called on the DSWD to fast-track the release of said funds as Filipinos “need it more than ever,” Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri said in plenary.
“Imagine what P83 billion can do. It will be a mere drop in the bucket for the DSWD to provide urgent financial assistance to affected farmers,” he added.
Sen. Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel also noted that the Bayanihan laws have specifically directed where the money should go, and it is to the Filipino people who are most in need of the government’s assistance.
Meanwhile, Sen. Richard Gordon saw no need to hold the passage of the resolution, noting that “most probably, the victims of these disasters are also recipients” of the Pantawid Pamilya Program.
“I don’t mind sharing this [fund],” he said.
“But we want to check first which areas we are going to use it for. You may have money but if you spent it in a very haphazard manner, we are not helping anybody,” he said.
