A liaison officer of Barangay Ilang in Davao City is the subject of investigation after she allegedly slashed the cash aid received by beneficiaries of the Ayuda sa Kapos ang Kita Program or AKAP of the Department of Social Welfare and Development Office (DSWD).
DSWD-11 said it has already received two complaints about the slashing of AKAP cash grants and it is looking into whether there is enough evidence that would warrant the filing of cases.
“Muingon gyud mi sir nga wala moy katunga ani kundili kamo. Inyo gyud ning dawaton ug para ni sa inyo,” DSWD-11 Crisis Intervention Section Head, Anne Jickain, said.
“In which we acted on it sa tanang mga cases and complains. As long as naa jud siyay bug-at nga basehan, pwede jud nato siya isang-at ngadto sa korte or i-file,” Jickain added.
A woman who claimed to be a barangay liaison officer allegedly collected P2,000 from the P5,000 cash assistance received by a beneficiary on September 5, 2024.
The tension between the woman and the beneficiary was captured in a video.
The day before the incident, the beneficiary said they were told that the full amount belongs to them and they should not give it to others when they received the cash assistance on September 4.
“Ang rason lage niya kasabutan lagi daw mao nang iyang kuan kasabutan. Pero kami ana wala jud mi nag-face-to-face og kasabutan ana. Pero basi man gud sa akong nahibaw-an, gikan sa partylist, sa AKAP, hangtud na gud sa nag-release na sa amoa sa kwarta, wala na gyud mi laing hatagan ana,” alias “Riki,” one of the beneficiaries, said.
Because of the tension, the beneficiary was forced to give the woman P2,000.
“Gihingusgan jud niya. Sa pagkakaron gani dapat sir giuli na unta na niya kay bulabog naman ang kana nga panghitabo, wala jud siyay gibuhat nga pag-uli sa kantidad nga iyang gipangkuha,” alias “Riki” added.
GMA Regional TV One Mindanao went to the house of the woman who was accused of collecting P2,000 from AKAP beneficiaries, but no one faced the team. The news team also reached out to the woman via phone calls, but to no avail.
A barangay official confirmed that the woman serves as liaison officer of the barangay.
“Kana man gud isa pud na ka problema są among barangay kay lahi lahi na ang nahisgutan sa mga tao tungod daw kay naa daw connection ang barangay which is wala jud sir kay ang transaction nila purely sa ilaha jud sir,” Barangay Ilang Councilwoman Andrea Babao said.
The barangay also plans to summon the complainant and the liaison officer to settle the incident.
DSWD-11 also urged beneficiaries to record any incident on video and report if the cash grants are being slashed.