Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, April 7)— As Luzon faces another two weeks of enhanced community quarantine, more lawmakers have called for the expansion of the cash aid program to help affected Filipinos deal with the COVID-19 crisis.
Joey Salceda, Albay Representative and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman, proposed that the government provide subsidy to 90 percent of the country’s population.
“(The) proposal is that “all Filipinos except those in the top 10 percent” of the population receive between ₱1000 each in emergency assistance during the enhanced community quarantine. The said coverage would include the middle class,” Salceda said in a statement Tuesday.
Salceda’s universal basic income proposal would provide an aid amounting to ₱1000 to ₱2000 per head— a move he says would “avoid arbitrariness in selecting eligible beneficiaries and sectors.”
Currently, the government’s social amelioration program covers only the “poorest of the poor,” with the low-income households expected to receive ₱5,000 to ₱8,000 worth of monthly assistance. The Albay lawmaker said the approach would be “human-centered.”
“Kapag maraming maghahati-hati sa isang household, maliit ang 5,000. Kaya maganda ang basic income per person approach. Because food intake is per person,” he noted.
[Translation: When one household has many members, 5,000 can be small. That’s why the basic income per person approach is good. Because food intake is per person.]
Senator Bong Revilla, on the other hand, also urged the executive department to expand the beneficiaries of the social amelioration program, noting that other sectors have also felt the adverse effects of the quarantine restrictions.
“Matindi na ang epekto ng ECQ. Hindi na lang poorest of the poor ang kumakalam ang sikmura. Dapat lahat ng wala nang makain maabutan ng tulong,” Revilla said.
[Translation: The ECQ’ effects are now grave. It’s not only the poorest of the poor who are starving. All of them should be given aid.]
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier approved the extension of the Luzon-wide lockdown until April 30, in an effort to curb the spread of the contagious disease. The area is home to over 57 million people and where Metro Manila, the country’s political and economic center, is located.
Cavite Governor Jonvic Remulla earlier floated the proposal to include middle-class families in the government’s emergency subsidy program. In a letter to the chief executive, Remulla cited how some of the families have already “depleted their savings” three weeks since the imposed quarantine, which left many Filipinos jobless.
Duterte agreed with Remulla’s appeal, but noted that the government is working “double time” to cater to the needs of the middle class.
Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles, who also serves as the COVID-19 task force spokesperson, said the proposal still needs to be reviewed by economic managers.
