Department of Social Welfare (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian admitted that the distribution of cash relief assistance may be possible through digital platforms, similar to their other programs like 4Ps. However, in this situation, they have to make sure that there will be no ghost beneficiaries involved in this program.

“We have to have a form of validation and verification dahil ito yung unang bugso,” he said

He also explained that the lists of claimants didn’t come from the DSWD but from the Local Government Units (LGUs), the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB), and Transport Network Companies (TNC). So, the DSWD has to verify that the individuals in the list truly exist and are legitimate drivers to ensure that benefits reach the right claimants.

The Secretary also admitted that they are avoiding a repeat of the issues regarding the Social Amelioration Program under the previous administration; the aid was distributed via digital platforms, yet there are some incidents saying that it didn’t reach the claimant.

“Dahil nilo-load nalang at kine-credit nalang sa mga financial service providers, yun pala yung iba nagpalit na ng cellphone number pero siya pa rin  yung nakalista. Namatay na pero nalalagyan pa rin yung account niya,” he explains

[“Because it was simply loaded and credited to financial service providers, it turned out some had already changed their cellphone number, but were still on the list. Others passed away but are still receiving benefits in their accounts.”]

He also mentioned that aside from gathering lists from the trusted source, the LTFRB and DSWD also conduct their own cross-matching.

“Kaya natandaan niyo, may mga complaint, hinihingi namin yung birthday, address, yung Jr., Sr., kasi kailangan namin malaman kung yung taong yon ay parehas sa isa pang kaparehas ang pangalan,” he explains

[“That’s why, as you may recall, there are complaints, we are asking the birthday, address, Jr., Sr., because we need to know if that person is the same as another individual with the same name.”]

RELATED VIDEO: