CLARK FREEPORT--A total of 216,556 drivers of transport network vehicle service (TNVS) and public utility vehicles (PUV) have received their emergency cash subsidy under the Social Amelioration Program (SAP).

According to Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Rolando Bautista, of this number, some 169,939 TNVS and PUV drivers come from various parts of the country while 46,617 are residents of areas declared under enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) on May 1 and May 2.

The cash subsidies of drivers were distributed through the digital scheme with DSWD’s partner-Financial Service Providers (FSPs) such as GCash, Paymaya, Starpay, Robinsons Bank, Union Bank and RCBC, as well as through branches of Land Bank of the Philippines.

Overall, DSWD targets to provide 217,170 TNVS and PUV drivers with their emergency subsidy under SAP.

The official list of drivers included in the SAP was provided by the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB).

Aside from the official list provided by LTFRB, the department received requests from various transport groups to include the list of their members in the roll of waitlisted beneficiaries.

To prevent duplication of assistance with other government agencies implementing SAP, DSWD conducted a validation and name-matching process on the submitted list of drivers.

After the validation process, drivers who were not included in the certified list of other government agencies but were found to be eligible for assistance were referred to concerned DSWD Field Offices for inclusion to the roll of SAP waitlisted beneficiaries.

DSWD continues to coordinate with its partner-FSPs to fast track the distribution of the cash subsidies of the remaining beneficiaries to help them tide over these trying times.