A total of 291 farmers and fisherfolks in Bacolod City received financial assistance from the Presidential Assistance to Farmers, Fisherfolk, and Families (PAFFF) program of the national government at the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC) on Monday, September 16.
The distribution was led by Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez along with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD)-Western Visayas.
Mae Cuaycong, Special Assistant to the Mayor, said it's the second batch of the distribution of PAFFF assistance where the first batch of the distribution was held during the visit of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Bacolod City in June 2024.
On June 27, Marcos led the distribution of assistance to a total of 8, 315 farmers and fisherfolks in Negros Occidental including Bacolod City at University Negros Occidental-Recoletos.
Of the number, at least 3,000 were beneficiaries from Bacolod City. They received P10,000 cash.
Marcos also turned over P10 million in monetary support to the City Government of Bacolod.
Cuaycong said the list of the beneficiaries was controlled by the City Agriculture Office and validated by the DSWD.
She said the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyany Pilipino Program (4Ps) among others are disqualified from availing of the PAFF.
She added that those who fail to claim their assistance will wait for another schedule of the DSWD for the payout in Bacolod.
Cuaycong noted that Mayor Benitez also ordered the Department of Social Services and Development (DSSD) to validate the list of the fisherfolks and farmers who earlier filed a complaint at the City Mayor's Office.
" If they are qualified members of the farmers and fisherfolks sector, they can avail the assistance," Cuaycong said. /MAP.