DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian and Vice President Sara Duterte. Voltaire F. Domingo, Senate PRIB/House of Representatives 

MANILA — The Department of Social Welfare and Development on Saturday denied Vice President Sara Duterte’s accusation that some politicians have been using the agency’s cash assistance programs to "buy" votes.

Duterte earlier warned the public against politicians who are using the DSWD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) and the Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) to win their favor, especially in the upcoming 2025 midterm elections.

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“Let me reiterate that all the DSWD’s Field Offices across the country serve people in need, whether they are walk-in clients or were referred to by local government unit (LGU) officials,” Social Welfare Secretary Rex Gatchalian said in a statment.

“The DSWD continues to process applications and distribute assistance through AICS and AKAP to qualified beneficiaries,” he said.

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The agency underscored that it has been applying “a stringent verification and validation process for clients who seek financial assistance, even for referrals from legislators and other LGU officials” to make sure that assistance does not overlap with other programs.

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DSWD also stressed that funding for its assistance programs comes from budget items in the General Appropriations Act and that “there is no GAA line item that entitles any congressional district or LGU to have an allocation in any amount and lodged this with the DSWD that could benefit their constituents.” 

MERGING AKAP AND AICS

Earlier this week, Sen. Imee Marcos pushed to remove the proposed P29-billion funding for AKAP, saying that the program should be merged with AICS, saying social protections would have more long-term benefits than direct financial assistance.

“Nakakatuwa ‘yang AKAP eh dahil bigla na lang sumulpot ‘yan. Wala naman sa NEP (National Expenditure Program), wala naman sa DSWD budget, wala man lang sa wishlist nila [ay] bigla na lang sumulpot noong nakaraang taon,” she said.

(This AKAP is funny because it just suddenly appeared. That is not in the NEP or in the proposed DSWD budget, or even on any wishlist. It just appeared last year)

According to the DSWD website, AKAP is a program similar to AICS which gives financial help but is limited to minimum wage earners.

The AKAP provides a one-time cash assistance between P3,000 to P5,000 for indigent families that “must not be receiving assistance from other government programs.”

But Sen. Marcos claimed that an AKAP beneficiary is given P2,000 up to P10,000.

The lawmaker argued that while AKAP is only for minimum wage earners, there are also AICS beneficiaries who are from indigent families.

Between January and October 2024, P20.7 billion was coursed through the AKAP to help more than 4 million near poor Filipinos, the DSWD said.

“The AKAP funds were allocated across all regions, with most areas achieving over 70 percent in fund obligations,” the agency said.

Some P40.9 billion was used through the AICS program to help more than 6.5 million Filipinos facing difficult circumstances in 2023, the DSWD said.

Among the assistance granted under the AICS are cash aid for transportation medical, burial, transportation, education, food and other support services for Filipinos undergoing a crisis, in accidents, or severe poverty, the agency said.