House of Representatives Minority Leader Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan wants the government to keep on distributing the P600 monthly rice subsidy to Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) households in cash, instead of actual rice bags.
“Rice is good, but cash is better because the money gets delivered straight and fast into the LandBank cash cards of 4Ps households,” Libanan, the 4Ps party-list representative, said in a statement on Sunday.
“Converting the rice grants into tangible rice packs will likely pose a logistical nightmare, considering that 4Ps households are spread all over the country, including remote barangays,” Libanan said.
Proposals have been made to convert the 4Ps rice grants into actual rice bundles to be supplied by the National Food Authority.
Libanan, however, said moving large volumes of rice for transfer to 4Ps households nationwide “will be extremely difficult, and is bound to create delays, inefficiency and waste.”
The 4Ps operates in 17 regions, 79 provinces, 1,484 municipalities, and 143 cities covering 4.4 million households.
“With cash, 4Ps households will be free to spend the money according to their immediate needs – whether it is food, medicines, or school transportation fare for their children,” Libanan pointed out.
Libanan said he supports the position of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to continue giving the rice allowance to 4Ps households in cash.
The DSWD has stood by its previous statement that giving the rice subsidy in cash “is more practical compared to giving actual bags of rice.”
The rice subsidy is currently being given to 4Ps households on top of their education and health cash grants.
The 4Ps is the government’s social protection and human capital development program that provides cash aid to poor households, subject to their compliance with requirements, such as sending their children to school, visiting health centers for check-ups, and attending family development sessions.
The 4Ps has an allocation of P106.3 billion in the 2024 General Appropriations Law.
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