Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Dinky Juliano-Soliman assures all Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries who joined the three-day rally at the DSWD Compound from February 25 to 27, 2013 and those who barricaded in Montevista Highway last January 15, 2013, will definitely not be delisted from the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino program.

This is in response to the concerns raised by Pantawid beneficiaries during the continuing relief aid operations and assembly meetings in the province of Compostela Valley recently. According to a beneficiary in Compostela town, some local residents nearby told them that they would be delisted from the program because they joined the protest rally.

“Pantawid or Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) beneficiaries can only be delisted if they will not follow the conditionalities set for the program which include regular attendance of their children in school, attendance of parent-beneficiaries during the Family Development Session, and regular check up of mothers and children in health centers,” Sec. Soliman pointed out.

Following an almost five-hour dialogue on February 27 that came out with a peaceful agreement between Barug Katawhan and the DSWD, relief operations, together with the local government of Compostela Valley province, continue distributing relief packs of goods for the affected families.

As of press time, list validation from Barug Katawhan with that of the DSWD masterlist is done simultaneously as relief packs operations continue in the typhoon ‘Pablo’ affected families in Compostela Valley and Davao Oriental.

According to Compostela Valley Provincial Social Welfare and Development (PSWD) head Josephine Frasco the relief operations will continue until March 29 in time for the election ban. “However, distribution of relief packs will still continue after affected families in the province of Compostela Valley are assessed. This means that affected families will be determined if they would still need relief goods to augment their daily needs or no longer needed because they are already back to their normal social functioning,” she added. ###