THE DEPARTMENT of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD XI) is set to roll out the rice subsidy payout to the second and last batch of Micro Rice Retailers (MRRs) on Sept. 25- 29.
Florlito Alaba, DSWD XI government and private sector partnership officer, said they expect a large number of recipients compared to the first batch after adding more names to the list.
Alaba told TIMES in an interview that the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI XI) was given until Sept. 22 to iron out the final list of eligible recipients to be endorsed by regional director Maria Belenda Ambi to DSWD.
“This coming week, magpaabot mi sa listing sa DTI nga i-forward sa amoa, kay dili man mi basta-basta mo-payout kay naa pa tay process nga ginabuhat, maghimo pamig project proposal, paaprubahan pa sa accounting, then anha pa irelease ang budget sa among cash unit,” Alaba said.
Alaba said the central office passed a directive last Sept. 14 that sari-sari store owners who also sell rice will be included in the rice subsidy.
“Possible sila maapil [sa second batch]. Ang ginatan-aw karon sa DTI nga isa sa ilang eligibility is dapat registered gyud sila, naa silay business permit,” Alaba said.
The sari-sari store owners are advised to visit the office of DTI XI to undergo validation to prevent some people from taking advantage of the subsidy.
Out of 182 MRRs in the region, only 143 received rice subsidy on Sept. 15. Meanwhile, in Davao City, only 39 MRRs availed the cash grant out of the target number of 58.
Alaba said the ineligibility of authorized claimants by the MRRs was the biggest problem during the two-day release of cash grants from Sept 13-14. He reminded the MRRs that if they authorize someone to claim on their behalf, it must belong to their first degree of consanguinity.
The official revealed that some of those MRRs who were not able to claim during the two-day release were given until Sept. 15 backed out.
“ Ang uban ani gipangtawagan na gyud sa DTI, ang uban ning- ingon nalang nga di nalang [mo claim] kay ang time nila, tapos considering nga 15,000 lang ang subsidy, gamay ra daw kaayo dako pa silag lugi compared sa madawat,” he added.
