THE Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program of the national government has enabled poor families to buy in bigger quantities basic commodities for their households.
Joy Rima Paguntalan, 37, of Brgy. Caradio-an, Himamaylan City in Negros Occidental, recalled how she would always prioritize buying several kilos of rice out of her husband’s P3,000 a month pay as a Bantay Dagat patrolman.
“Bisan wala sud-an, basta may tinig-ang lang, busog ang mga bata. Kabudlay gid kung mawad-an bugas sa balay kapin pa kung naga-eskwela sila, (Even if there is no viand so long as there is rice, my children will have a full stomach. It’s difficult if we run out of rice because then, my children would go to school hungry)” Joy said.
Joy Rima Paguntalan of Brgy. Caradio-an, Himamaylan City, Negros Occidental during the cash grant release at the City Auditorium.
Joy, who now avails of cash grants through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, happily shared that she could now afford to buy one sack of rice to ensure the family’s daily rice consumption.
“Kung wala pa ang Pantawid Pamilya, indi pa ako makasarang magbakal isa ka sako nga bugas (Had it not been to Pantawid Pamilya, I could never have afford buying one sack of rice),” she said.
“Ginapa-igo-igo lang man namon permi ang sweldo sang bana ko kag ang kita ko sa pagbaligya isda sa tanan nga galastusan sang mga kabataan sa eskwelahan, (My husband’s pay and my earnings as a fish vendor could hardly meet our expenses for the household and my children’s education)” she added.
Joy and husband Jay Gary have three children—Joe Fritz, third year high school; Jaywel, grade 5; and Joyce, grade 4. All three are receiving P300 each per school month as education assistance from Pantawid Pamilya. Aside from the educational grant, the family also receives P500 monthly for health and nutrition. The cash grants are released every two months either through Philpost or Land Bank of the Philippines.
On February 19, Joy was one of the 3,573 Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries who lined up at Himamaylan City Auditorium to get her cash grants covering the period November to December 2012 and January to February 2013.
Joy said the P5,600 she received would again be spent for her family’s food and her children’s vitamins and school expenses.
MARKET DAY
During the cash grant release facilitated by the personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and the City Social Welfare and Development Office (CSWDO) of Himamaylan, vendors set up their merchandise outside the City Auditorium. [Beneficiaries who have received their cash grants can be seen crowding up stalls selling rice, vegetables, breads, shoes and slippers, umbrella, and other informative school materials.]
Beneficiaries who have received their cash grants can be seen crowding up stalls selling rice, vegetables, breads, shoes and slippers, umbrella, and other informative school materials.
Pantawid Pamilya Bookkeeper Christine Jangad said rice and bread are always the first to be sold out, indicating the grantees’ priorities of their cash grants.
Pantawid Pamilya is the national government’s poverty alleviation program that provides cash grants to poor families with children aged 14 years old and below. Beneficiaries can avail of the cash grants for five years provided that they comply with the conditions on health, nutrition and education. These conditions include availing themselves of regular health care services, posting at least 85 percent school attendance among children aged three to 14 years old and attendance to Family Development Sessions. (DSWD6/Alma L. Jornadal)