Nearly 1 million 4Ps beneficiaries to be removed from list —DSWD Sec. Tulfo

Almost a million beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) will be removed from the list of recipients of the targeted social assistance, Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Secretary Erwin Tulfo said Monday.

In a radio interview, Tulfo said the DSWD would take three to four weeks to finish cleansing the list, which has around 4.4 million beneficiaries.

“Wala pa akong exact figure pero initially ang sabi sa akin ay halos isang milyon ang aalisin natin sa listahan (I don’t have an exact figure yet but I was informed that almost 1 million will be cut from the list),” he said.

Tulfo said the vacated slots for the conditional cash transfer program will be given to new beneficiaries as many applicants are on the waiting list.

Citing the survey by the DSWD, he said around 15 million people are below the poverty line in the country.

Tulfo said President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. directed him to clean the list of beneficiaries amid reports that some 4Ps beneficiaries are well-off and are using the cash assistance in gambling.

The DSWD identifies the beneficiaries of 4Ps and other social assistance programs through its National Household Targeting System for Poverty Reduction or Listahanan.

To execute Marcos’ order, Tulfo earlier said he would issue an “amnesty” call for those who are already unqualified beneficiaries to surrender their accounts to the DSWD within 30 or 60 days or face charges.

“Kasi parang estafa ‘yan kasi niloloko mo ang gobyerno (It’s like estafa because you are defrauding the government),” he said. —KG, GMA News