By Jose Cielito Reganit
MANILA – Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rex Gatchalian on Monday reported that over 250,000 public utility vehicle (PUV) drivers have already received their cash relief assistance (CRA), while more than 170,000 unlisted drivers are now being validated for inclusion in special payouts after the Holy Week.
“We will be doing a special payout session in Metro Manila after the Holy Week. It will include the unclaimed because they’re unclaimed. Nasa list sila pero hindi nila nakuha. Isasabay na rin namin yung supplemental list, meaning ito yung mga additional na wala sila sa listahan (They are on the list but were not able to claim the assistance. We will also include the supplemental list, meaning the additional who were not in the list) for whatever reason, so we’re asking different sources to bring them to us,” Gatchalian said during a press conference at the DSWD Central Office.
Gatchalian led the joint press conference with Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) Board Member Greg Pua and Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) Supervising Director Carlo Murcia of the Postal Regulation Division.
He reported that as of March 29, a total of 256,040 drivers received PHP5,000 each as cash aid through the DSWD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS) program.
Of the total, 102,824 are tricycle drivers, 86,268 are service delivery riders, 22,937 are transport network vehicle service (TNVS) drivers, 22,031 are traditional and modern public utility jeepney (PUJ) drivers, and 21,980 are motorcycle or MC taxi riders.
A total of PHP1.28 billion has already been disbursed, nearing the PHP1.5 billion estimated fund for the first round of the Metro Manila payout.
Addressing the concern on unlisted beneficiaries, the DSWD chief clarified that a special payout will be conducted after Holy Week to accommodate both drivers who were unable to claim their assistance during scheduled payouts and those not included in the initial lists.
For tricycle drivers, Gatchalian said all 17 local government units in Metro Manila are currently coordinating with their respective tricycle operators and drivers associations (TODAs) to consolidate the supplemental lists, which are expected to be submitted by Wednesday.
For PUJ drivers, the DSWD and LTFRB will jointly deploy help teams across Metro Manila to reconcile discrepancies in beneficiary lists.
“Tomorrow (Tuesday), LTFRB and DSWD will be deploying 17 help teams to the different LGUs. The scenario there will be, we asked the LGUs to gather all their JODA (jeepney operators and drivers associations) in a room, one by one tatawagin naming (we will call them). We will compare the list that they have versus the list that was paid out. We’ll go through it one by one. It’s part of our campaign na walang tsuper na maiiwanan (that no driver will be left behind),” Gatchalian told reporters.
Meanwhile, for TNVS, MC taxi, and service delivery riders, the DSWD continues to engage transport network companies (TNCs) and operators to secure complete and updated driver lists.
“We have met and will continue to meet the TNCs or their operators or the PEMEDES (Private Express and Messengerial Delivery Service), so that we can submit their list… together with LTFRB, we managed to secure those lists,” Gatchalian said.
According to Pua, the TNCs have submitted an additional 53,000 TNVS drivers, of which 24,000 were identified as duplicates, and 29,000 are currently under verification.
For MC taxis, 81,000 additional names were submitted, with 3,000 duplicates and 78,000 undergoing validation.
Meanwhile, Murcia reported that around 63,000 additional riders from PEMEDES Private Express and/or Messenger Delivery Service firms have been submitted for verification, including those operating within and outside Metro Manila.
With the ongoing validation, Gatchalian assured that the DSWD will begin rolling out cash assistance in the provinces in parallel with the special payouts in Metro Manila, in line with the directive of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of making sure every affected PUV driver gets financial assistance from the government.
“Alinsunod sa utos ng Pangulo, lalabas na kami ng (In line with the directives of the President, we will go out of) Metro Manila as early as Wednesday next week,” the DSWD Secretary said. (PNA)
