DSWD considers postponing ayuda distribution during bad weather

After the deaths of several senior citizens in a Tanay flash flood, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Monday said it would consider postponing the distribution of cash aid during bad weather.

Interviewed on GTV’s Balitanghali, DSWD Assistant Secretary Rommel Lopez said this is to ensure the safety not only of the beneficiaries but also of DSWD workers.

“Ayaw na po nating maulit yung pangyayari na ‘yun. Ngayon ang way forward ng DSWD kapag may banta po ng sama ng panahon ay maaari na po nating ipagpaliban ang mga ganitong payout,” he said.

(We do not want it to happen again. Now the way forward for the DSWD is possibly postponing payouts when there is a threat of bad weather.)

Lopez acknowledged that concerned beneficiaries who really need the money may oppose such a decision, but he said the DSWD will “strike a balance.”

On Saturday, eight passengers of a jeepney—seven senior citizens and a five-year-old child—were killed in Barangay Sta. Ines in Tanay, Rizal after they were swept away in a flash flood.

The elderly victims went to the town to get financial assistance from the DSWD.

In light of this, the Tanay Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (MDRRMO) is asking the national government to adjust the system for the distribution of financial aid.

Tanay MDRRMO head Norberto Matienzo Jr. made the statement when asked about changes in the distribution system, perhaps by sending government personnel to remote areas to give financial assistance to beneficiaries. — Joviland Rita/DVM, GMA News