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The distribution this semester of the cash grants for the social pensioners in Central Visayas nears completion at 95.76% as of yesterday, June 11.

This is equivalent to 265,055 beneficiaries that are indigent senior citizens who received their social pension which sums up to Php 813,837,000.00.

Indigent senior citizens in the island municipality of Pilar, Cebu started receiving their Social Pension cash grant for this year’s semester.

Regional Director Rebecca Geamala said that those remaining 11,233 listed as beneficiaries may go to their respective LGUs to claim their individual pension.

Geamala added that for those who failed because of the mobility concerns may issue an authorization to their family members with their ID and present to their local social welfare and development officer to claim the pension.

In the region, the Department of Social Welfare and Development has a target of 276,278 beneficiaries to receive 3,000 pesos each this semester from their 500 monthly stipends to augment their daily subsistence and other medical needs.

With the risk of COVID-19 this semester, the LGUs entered a memorandum of agreement with DSWD to ensure the distribution of the cash grants in accordance with the approved list of beneficiaries provided by DSWD.

Geamala said that DSWD Special Disbursing Officers would have hard time going to the field and conduct payout due to travel restrictions and other mobility issues.

Geamala believed in the capacity and integrity of the local chief executives and LSWDO of the different LGUs and thanked them for distributing the social pension to indigent senior citizens.

Geamala advised the LGUs who are still not done with their SocPen payout to hasten the distribution and liquidation so that the DSWD shall start right away the second tranche of SAP.

Meanwhile, Clavel Saycon, social welfare officer IV and social pension focal person, said that there are local government units that have been conducting payout as early as last week of April.

Saycon said that there are others which started the payouts but are constrained because of the lockdown in some areas.

Some LGUs have created cluster teams for the payout of the indigent senior citizens that were held in barangay gymnasiums and conducted simultaneously.

However, some LGUs have adopted the house-to-house distribution of the cash grants especially those areas with a high number of cases of COVID-19, geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas, and those who are bed-ridden, frail, sick and very old. ###

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