Cordillera Administrative Region- The Cordillera office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development Field Office (DSWD FO CAR) assures the public that it remains committed to provide immediate and fair disaster augmentation efforts.
This is made even after the rise of demands for the department to provide food and non-food relief assistance to communities affected by the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) due to the COVID-19 outbreak.
“We are doing our best to ensure we are able to provide efficient service to our communities. Even before we received requests from our local government units, we have already prepared and prepositioned goods in the various provinces in the Region,” DSWD-CAR OIC Regional Director Leo L. Quintilla said.
As part of the Response Cluster, the DSWD is mandated to provide augmentation support to various local government units (LGUs) in providing programs and services to individuals and families who have been affected by disaster or calamities for them to be able to withstand and recover from the impact of the incident. Considering Republic Act 7160 or the Local Government Code, the DSWD is mandated to provide technical assistance and resource augmentation to its local counterparts and other stakeholders in the form of capacity building trainings, learning exchange forum, and provision of relief commodities.
“The LGUs are expected to provide for the needs of their communities first. Once their resources are depleted, they can now request for augmentation from the DSWD FO CAR. Upon receipt of request and other necessary documents, we will review the request for possible augmentation. We will provide the request as they comply with our requirements and we have enough available goods,” Director Quintilla added.
As of 31 March 2020, the DSWD FO CAR is maintaining 11, 803 family food packs that are ready for augmentation. The Field Office also has a standby Quick Response Fund worth about PhP3 million
Meanwhile, Director Quintilla underscored the importance of fairness in the provision of services following the receipt of reports on the alleged partiality during relief distribution.
“We appeal to all our partners and stakeholders to uphold fairness and honesty. We would also like to reiterate our core messages in the Department and that is serbisyong walang puwang sa katiwalian at patas na pagtrato sa komunidad.
We, in the DSWD, are doing our best to respond to your requests as fast as possible but please help us ensure that the rightful beneficiaries will receive what is due to them.
Efficient and fair service delivery could not be done by DSWD alone. This is a partnership among the local government units (LGUs), civil society organizations, the public, and the Department,” Director Quintilla added.
The DSWD FO CAR is in close coordination with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in tapping the local government units to come up with the list of qualified beneficiaries. From the barangay officials, the municipal or city local government shall verify and validate the provided list.
Individuals who have queries and clarification are advised to coordinate with their respective local government officials. Concerns on local government officials can also be directed to the DILG.
As of 31 March 2020, around PhP 53, 272,748.75 worth of assistance have already been released. Of the amount, the DSWD FO CAR has provided PhP 3,085,617.75 worth of assistance, the LGUs with PhP 45,643,758.00 and PhP 4,531,418 from others. The DSWD FO CAR has also provided around PhP 230,000 worth assistance to families and individuals who have sought medical and burial assistance through its Crises Intervention Section (CIS).
By Nerizza Faye G. Villanueva
