DSWD denies Pacquiao claims of ‘missing funds’ in cash aid program

The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Sunday said there were no missing funds in the disbursement of financial aid for low-income families bearing the brunt of lockdown restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was in reaction to Senator Manny Pacquiao's recent allegations that the DSWD failed to distribute P10.4 billion worth of Social Amelioration Program funding to beneficiaries.

"All aid distributed is supported by liquidation reports that can be shared, if necessary. The agency ensures that the processes adopted by FSPs (financial service providers) on payouts are in accordance with BSP (Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas)-approved processes and existing government accounting rules and procedures," said DSWD in a statement.

Pacquiao also alleged that P14 billion in aid meant for 1.8 million beneficiaries was sent through the Starpay app, with only 500,000 beneficiaries downloading the app.

But DSWD said it terminated the services of FSPs, including Starpay, in April 2021 which prompted them to manually send the payouts for the unserved second tranche of cash aid beneficiaries.

"The FSPs, including Starpay, liquidated the budget that they received and refunded the amount for the unserved beneficiaries to the DSWD," read the statement.

The Department, nonetheless, reiterated that it is ready to face any probe into the allegations raised by the senator.

As of July 2, 2021, DSWD said 14.88 million low-income families received the second tranche of cash aid with over P89.8 billion disbursed.

Meanwhile, more than 17 million poor families received their first tranche of cash iad with more than P98 billion disbursed. — DVM, GMA News