Councilors claim 4Ps iffy list

Saturday, January 28, 2012

LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) reaped various criticisms this early.

The Municipal Council of La Trinidad questioned the accuracy of the national household targeting system (NHTS) list from which the 4Ps determines its beneficiaries.

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During the Municipal Council regular session last Tuesday, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) presented the 4Ps to the legislative. The DSWD team also oriented the council about the program.

Provincial Social Welfare and Development Officer Juana Bannawe explained they used the NHTS list in identifying the 4Ps beneficiaries. The list is a result of the government’s effort to identify the poorest of the poor.

Bannawe said the National Government hired enumerators to conduct the survey.

DSWD Municipal Link Levitica Eclarino said the survey was completed last 2009 during the height of Typhoon Pepeng, of which the outcome is the NHTS list, which identified the indigent families in every town in the country.

In the municipality, Eclarino revealed there were around 3,000 indigent families enumerated but only 934 were on the process of validation. She explained some of the listed families did not attend the community assembly held to confirm the facts being enumerated. Some also were found out to be a well–to–do family.

Eclarino and Bannawe claimed the NHTS list is an in-depth and objective system in determining who really are the poor families in an area.

The council was overwhelmed by the initial information given by DSWD on the NHTS list. Councilor Henry Kipas even said they will use the NHTS list as their basis also to determine their beneficiaries on their programs.

However, the council through Councilor Horacio Ramos inquired on the issue of the indigenous peoples who are considered beneficiary of the 4Ps but are also under the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples programs.

Eclarino said they can still execute exclusion and inclusion process if a certain beneficiary had another program under other line agencies of the government. The DSWD team said they can still delist families if they will be found out to be a well–to–do family.

A heated discussion occurred on the council’s inquiry about the inclusion of the bonafide and voters of the town. The council wanted the program to prioritize the voters of the town.

The council insisted that the DSWD should consider first the bonafide residents of the town before others. They also claimed the NHTS list is not accurate because the enumerators are outsiders. They claimed these enumerators just comply with their job. (Rubyloida Bitog)