5 % 4Ps beneficiaries delisted in Cordillera

By Dexter A. See

BAGUIO CITY – Around five percent beneficiaries of the national government’s Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) have been delisted from receiving their benefits in the Cordillera because of alleged violations on the part of the poor families.

In the initial stage of the anti-poverty program where there were 25 towns covered by the conditional cash transfer program, at least five percent of the over 14,000 identified families were already removed from the list while 5.88 percent of the beneficiaries in the expansion program were also removed from the list.

Mary Ann Buclao, regional focal person for 4Ps of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in the Cordillera, said among reasons for delisting of beneficiaries from the conditional cash transfer program include no qualified dependents at the time of the implementation stage; transfer of beneficiaries from towns not covered by the anti-poverty program and inclusion of beneficiaries in inclusion errors of the program such as family income.

She said release of the benefits of the families is done on a quarterly basis after the conduct of the mandatory monitoring of the families to make sure that they comply with the conditions of the program.

However, Buclao said the system adapted by the agency in implementation of the program was not a perfect one but efforts were being exerted by project implementors to check compliance of families to conditions so they could utilize the funds to uplift their poor living conditions.

While there were failures among the beneficiaries, she revealed there were more families and their dependents who have succeeded in achieving some of the goals and objectives of the anti-poverty program.