CLARKFIELD — The national government’s assistance to low-income Filipinos affected by the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) will take sometime before it reaches the countryside.
This is the contention of Capas Mayor Reynaldo Catacutan who met with Pampanga-based mediamen on Wednesday morning at Bale Balita in the Clark Freeport Zone which is currently on lockdown.
Capas, Tarlac is one of the communities contiguous to the Clark Freeport Zone. It also houses the New Clark City where the first batch of the Wuhan-based Filipino workers had been quarantined.
The financial assistance promised by the Philippine government to 18 million low-income Filipinos under the “Bayanihan to Heal as One” law may even come after the targeted end of the ECQ on April 14.
Under the “Bayanihan to Heal as One” law, the low-income families may receive cash subsidies of P5,000 to P8,000.
The social amelioration program will only include beneficiaries under the 4Ps, MCCT, TODA drivers with franchise, JODA with franchise, daily workers, taxi drivers, sari-sari store owners, ambulant vendors, manicurist, barbers, farmers registered in Department of Agriculture, poor families (with at least senior citizen or PWD, distressed OFW, nursing mom, and indigenous people companion)
Under the said program, village chiefs will have to identify beneficiaries and submit them to DSWD for validation. DSWD in Manila will again make a final validation.
“The barangay captains will have to work double time,” according to Catacutan.
With the local government units left to their own devices, the Capas munipality had already conducted the first tranche of relief distribution to residents of some 20 barangays.
Catacutan said they already gave more than 38,000 relief packages. The relief distribution in Capas will continue on Monday, according to Catacutan.
Meanwhile, Catacutan said the UP-PGH Polyclinic inside the New Clark City is now ready to accept PUIs for treatment. For those suffering severe symptoms or will come out positive for COVID-19 there are “higher level hospitals or health care facilities” to admit them.
Catacutan said the Capas Public Market is open from 5am to 5pm. He said two buses are currently serving six western barangays of Capas which are some 20 kilometers away from the town proper. Residents were also given trike passes allowing them to buy basic necessities, according to him.
As of March 31, Capas has 624 PUMs, six PUIs and one patient positive for COVID-19, who is currently admitted in a hospital in Moncada, Tarlac. The COVID-19 positive patient is already in stable condition, according to Catacutan. –Photos by JP Manalang