47,000 4Ps beneficiaries delisted in Region 2

By Liezle Basa Inigo

CAUAYAN CITY — At least 47,000 beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps are set to be delisted in Region 2.
    Region 2 is Cagayan Valley which includes the provinces of Batanes, Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Quirino, four chartered cities which are Cauayan, Ilagan, Santiago and Tuguegarao.
    The decision came following an order by Department of Social Welfare Development Secretary Erwin Tulfo to clear the list nationwide.
    Public Information Officer Michael Gaspar of DSWD Region 2 in an interview here with a local radio station said that up to 1.3 million will be removed from the list of 4Ps nationwide and 47,000 of them will be from Region 2.
    Gaspar said the number could still increase after the evaluation is completed.
    One reason why beneficiaries will be removed from the list is that they are no longer eligible under the program.
Households with children below 18 years of age who are going to school are eligible. Beyond this, these beneficiaries are no longer eligible.
    “Ang matatanggal sa 4Ps ay papalitan naman ng eligible beneficiaries, (Those who will be removed from the list will be replaced by new members who are eligible),” the official said.
    The DSWD staff will be in charge of telling the members of 4Ps in case they are included in the delisting.
    Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program is a conditional cash transfer program of the Philippine government under the DSWD in its aims to eradicate extreme poverty in the Philippines by investing in health and education particularly in ages 0–18.
    It is patterned on programs in other developing countries like Brazil (Bolsa Familia) and Mexico (Oportunidades).
    The 4Ps program started in June 2014 covering the country’s 17 regions, 79 provinces and 1,484 municipalities and 143 key cities.
    As of June 25, 2014, the country has been extending cash assistance to around four million beneficiaries.
    In April 2019, President Duterte signed a law institutionalizing the 4Ps cash transfer program.