THE DEPARTMENT of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Tuesday said it is working with the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) to automate its payout and liquidation system for its social assistance program for families affected by crises and disasters
“We are in the process of procuring an automated system for our Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations Program (AICS), because the problem we often face is liquidation,” Social Welfare Secretary Rexlon T. Gatchalian told a Senate Social Justice hearing in mixed English and Filipino.
“What Landbank will do and the DBP is after a while they are running the payouts, they will be able to give us a list of people who are recurring or those that keep coming back,” he added.
The AICS program provides medical, burial, transportation, education and financial assistance among others to individuals and families that have been hit by crises.
At the same hearing, Senator Christopher Lawrence T. Go urged the agency to ensure that the social assistance program is properly implemented.
“Our problem now is to institutionalize AICS,” he said. “Just continue the programs that will help. Don’t stop, don’t destroy it, don’t make Filipinos suffer.” — John Victor D. Ordoñez
