I have written a letter to Social Welfare Secretary Rolando Bautista disputing the position of his department that the two-month emergency subsidy of P5,000-P8,000.00 provided for in Republic Act No. 11469 (otherwise known as the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act) is only for low-income families belonging to the informal sector.
I have pointed out in said letter that the target beneficiary of said subsidy as expressly provided in the law are low-income households, with no qualification whether or not the said household belongs to the formal or informal sector.
Thus, by limiting the beneficiary of said subsidy to households belonging to the informal sector only, the Department of Social Welfare and Development in effect is amending an act of Congress, which is not within its power to do so as its authority is only to implement or enforce the law.
Joint Memorandum Circular No. 1-Series of 2020, whose purpose is to implement the mandate of said law, does not, in fact, make said limitation as it provides that its target beneficiaries are families that belong to either the poor or informal sector which are at risk of not earning a living during the enhanced community quarantine, who may have at least one member belonging to vulnerable or disadvantaged sectors (and thus not only to families belonging to the informal sector).
Among the vulnerable or disadvantaged sectors which the said memorandum mentions are families whose combined income falls within the poverty threshold as defined by the National Economic and Development Authority (P10,481) or those who do not own housing facilities or who live in makeshift dwelling units, and do not enjoy security of tenure. Some families belonging to the formal sector or those who are employed (whether in the private sector or in government) meet said description.
In limiting the beneficiaries of said emergency subsidy to families belonging to the informal sector only, the DSWD is denying subsidy to families who are entitled to it under the law, and thus defeating the very intent and purpose of the law.
SEVERO BRILLANTES
brillanteslaw@gmail.com