SILANG, Cavite — Some 1,161 indigent senior citizens each received PHP2,400 cash as social pension from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Unconditional Cash Transfer Program/Tax Reform Cash Transfer (UCT/TRCT) during the agency’s pilot distribution held last week.
Noah Caasi, Silang Community Affairs head, told the Philippine News Agency on Friday that the local govrnment through Mayor Emilia Lourdes F. Poblete and the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office hosted the pilot project through the DSWD Calabarzon.
Caasi said the Silang municipal government distribution of the social pensions of PHP200 per month, or PHP2,400 per year, for the indigent senior citizens last June 30 at Patio Medina,” is the DSWD’s pioneering launch of the new cash grants in the country.”
DSWD Secretary Virginia N. Orogo was present during the event, together with Department of Finance (DOF) Assistant Secretary Tony Lambino, DSWD Region IV-A Director Annie Mendoza, Land Bank of the Philippines and other town officials.
Per DSWD website, Congress tasked DSWD as the implementing agency for the distribution of the UCT and put together a mechanism to distribute the PHP200 UCT to 10 million Filipinos who belong to the poorer sectors of the country besides other social welfare programs.
A total of PHP24 billion has been earmarked for the 2018 UCT Implementation in the 2018 General Appropriations Act (GAA).
The UCT is in response to the immediate needs of many Filipinos for economic assistance from the government in the wake of the implementation of Republic Act 10963 or the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) law which affects an increase in petroleum prices.
The cash grant scheme will be implemented for three years as stipulated in the TRAIN law with initial release of PHP2,400 or PHP200 per month for 12 months this year and will be hiked to PHP 300 per month or a yearly grant of PHP3,600 for 2019 and 2020, respectively. (Gladys Pino/PNA)
