BINGAWAN, Iloilo-Barely three feet in height, he was noticeable among the crowd of people inside the town’s gymnasium that day. Clad in a blue t-shirt, he looked innocent at why people were so busy moving from one table to another.
He was seven-year-old JB Falces of Brgy. Ngingi-an in this town in Central Panay. He accompanied his mom Welba who received the P2,100 cash grant from the national government intended for the schooling and health of her children during the Caravan of Social Services organized by the Office of the Ombudsman in partnership with DSWD and other agencies.
Asked why he joined his mother, the boy said, “Gapangayo ko bakal papel sa eskwelahan(I was asking her to buy me paper for school),” he said.
JB, who is currently enrolled at Ngingi-an Elementary School, has six other siblings. Three of them are already in high school while one has a family of her own and another is an infant.
While JB did not seem to have bothered about the large number of the crowd that day, he wore a smile as her mother announced, “Mabakal pa gid ako uniform nila sa eskwelahan karun maam (I’m going to buy them uniform for school).”

POLICEMAN
Welba admitted that it has been hard for her and her husband Justiniano, 48 years old, to provide for their children.
She has no work while Justiniano drives a dump truck for construction projects. “Gapasalamat gid kami sa gobyerno sa pagbulig sa amon. Sang wala Pantawid, budlay mag-asikaso sa mga bata. Gapangita man ko kwarta para makabulig-bulig. Subong, mahatagan ko gid sila tiyempo (We are thankful to the government for helping us. When Pantawid Pamilya was not helping us, it was very difficult to give focus to my children. I had to both find means to earn and at the same time attend to them. Now that we are getting help, I have more time for them).”
When JB was asked about his dream, he said, “Gusto ko mangin pulis sa urihi (I want to be a policeman someday).

DETERMINATION
Welba said that Pantawid Pamilya has brought positive changes in their lives.
“Hanggud gid bulig sini sa amon. Muna nga ginapaeskwela namon ang amon kabataan kay bal-an namon nga amo na ang paagi para mauntat ang kaimulon. Sa pag-eskwela, kaya namon ang pagbag-o. (This is a big help to us. That’s why we are sending our children to school because that is the only way to stop poverty. Through education, we can achieve change).

BINGAWANONS, CAPIZNONS REACHED TOO
That day, it was not only the family of JB that was reached by the government. There were thousands more who were served by the government as the National Government Agencies (NGAs), with the leadership of the Ombudsman and partnership with DSWD, brought the government closer to the people.
DSWD alone released P1.1 million in cash grants to 731 family beneficiaries of Pantawid Pamilya coming from Bingawan. Aside from this, a total of P608,000 was released for the implementation of Social Pension in the town and adjacent municipalities of Tapaz, Dumalag and Jamindan.
Beneficiaries also lined up for services of PhilHealth, Department of Agriculture, and other agencies./dswd6/May Rago-Castillo