The government can tap close to P400 billion worth of public funds for the operations against the coronavirus pandemic following the passage of the Bayanihan law, according to Cabinet Secretary Karlo Nograles.
Nograles, spokesman of the inter-agency task force for the management of the emerging infectious diseases (IATF), said the bulk of the funds could bankroll the social amelioration measures, including food and cash assistance to Filipinos in need
Republic Act No. 11469 or the “Bayanihan to Heal as One Act” gives the President extra powers to address the coronavirus emergency, including realigning savings within the Executive branch for government’s efforts to contain the disease outbreak.
“Ang alam ko about P200… almost – in fact, P400 kung i-add mo lahat-lahat. Almost P400 billion kung hindi ako nagkakamali,” he said during a Palace press briefing last Wednesday when asked about the funds that can be accessed under the Bayanihan measure.
“Eighteen million families ang target dito. Malaking chunk ng pera ang mapupunta dito and that’s food assistance plus iyong cash assistance na ibibigay ng gobyerno sa lahat ng mga marginalized at iyong mga kababayan natin na nangangailangan,” he said.
Under the Bayanihan law, the President is empowered to provide a the two-month emergency subsidy program for around 18 million poor families. The emergency subsidy will range between P5,000 to P8,000 for low income households.
Nograles said a technical working group chaired by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has been directed to convene and finalize the government’s social amelioration program.
“Kapag itong JMC ay na-approve na ng IATF at mapirmahan na ng iba’t-ibang mga ahensiya na kasama dito sa Joint Memorandum Circular, then we’ll launch it immediately,” he said.
“We will immediately implement this and this is nationwide basically, at ang target po dito (the target) is 18 million families,” he added.
Another concerned task group on resource management will also identify the requirements for the coronavirus response, including hospital beds, testing kits, medical supplies and other equipment, so they can could be effectively addressed, according to Nograles.
He said they must submit a report to the IATF and the President to facilitate the procurement of the resources needed to combat the pandemic. He said the distribution of resources will not only be in Luzon but Visayas and Mindanao as well.
“Dapat mabilis ang action ng lahat diyan (The action must be swift). We are in a state of calamity. We are in a state of emergency,” he said.
The government earlier crafted the “National Action Plan” to implement measures to effectively combat the spread of the coronavirus and mitigate the impact of the pandemic to the social, economic, and personal security of Filipinos.
Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana has been designated to lead the national task force to supervise operations against the disease outbreak. Smaller task groups are also created to focus on response operations, resource management and logistics, and strategic communications.
“Itong structure na in-approve po nga IATF (The structure approved by the IATF) this is the structure that is used whenever the country gets hit by a national calamity or when we are in a state of national emergency,” he said.
“Timing lang din iyong pag-approve nito, pagpirma ni Pangulo noong batas ng Bayanihan Act (It coincided with the President’s signing of the Bayanihan Act) so that all goes hand-in-hand,” he said. (Genalyn Kabiling)
