No more lines in the distribution of financial assistance.
That was one of the promises of the city government of San Pedro, Laguna under Mayor Art Mercado as it launched its most ambitious project yet: the San Pedro Green Card, officially unveiled during the celebration of the Sampaguita Festival last May 3.
‘All-in-one’
In an interview with OpinYon Laguna, Jhe-rico Sam Colina, head of the city’s Public Affairs and Information Office (PAIO), said the San Pedro Green Card is part of the Mercado administration’s push to transform San Pedro into a “smART City.”
To recall, the city government forged a partnership with digital payments platform Maya Philippines for the future implementation of online payments and transactions last June 2023.
“Not only can the San Pedro Green Card be used as an ATM card because it is powered by Maya, it also serves as a secondary identification card dahil nandito na lahat ng impormasyon na maaaring magamit sa iba’t ibang transaksyon sa LGU,” Colina explained.
As part of the “digitalization” of all government services and transactions in San Pedro City, the new card will enable the city government to efficiently distribute financial assistance to beneficiaries without the hassle of long lines.
“With the Green Card, we wanted na hindi na pipila yung mga tao – as long as may Green Card ka, at ikaw ang beneficiary [ng city government], makakatanggap ka na ng financial assistance online,” the PAIO head added.
All San Pedrenses covered
Initially, the Green Card will be made available for senior citizens, persons with disabilities (PWDs), and students who are enrolled in the Iskolar ng Lungsod ng San Pedro (ILSP) program.
However, Colina expressed the hope of the city government that the Green Card will be made available for all San Pedrenses of legal age, regardless of economic status, by 2032.
"Uunahin po natin yung tatlong sectors na iyon [senior citizens, PWDs and scholars] dahil may database na po ang city government from the local departments concerned with them," the PAIO head explained to OpinYon Laguna. "So may additional purpose na rin po ang Green Card natin: hindi lang mapapabilis ang pagbibigay natin ng assistance, mapapabilis rin po ang pag-a-update ng mga database ng ating mga benepisyaryo."
The city government of San Pedro will kick off the distribution of application forms for the San Pedro Green Card on May 15, officials informed OpinYon Laguna.
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