LA TRINIDAD, Benguet– Some five thousand thirty-four individuals from the province’s thirteen towns were able to benefit from the initial wave of the financial assistance lodged under the labor department’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay Para sa Ating Disadvantaged or Displaced Workers program.
Benguet Caretaker Congressman and Anti-Crime and Terrorism through Community Involvement and Support (ACT-CIS) Party-list Rep. Eric Yap, who chairs the powerful House Committee on Appropriations, Gov. Melchor Diclas, DOLE-CAR regional director and the different municipal mayors spearheaded the distribution of the wages of the identified TUPAD beneficiaries that will run through up to next week.
For this week, Yap, together with Gov. Diclas were joined by Bokod Mayor Thomas Wales, Jr., Kabayan Mayor Louie Dawal, Buguias Mayor Ruben Tindaan, Mankayan Mayor Frenzel Ayong, Atok Mayor Raymundo Sarac, Bakun Mayor Bill Raymundo and Tublay Mayor Armando Lauro during the distribution of the assistance to the recipients in their respective municipalities.
By next week, Yap, Diclas and DOLE-CAR officials led by regional director Nathaniel Lacambra will be joined by La Trinidad Mayor Romeo K. Salda, Tuba Mayor Clarita Sal-ongan, Kapangan Mayor Manny Fermin. Kibungan Mayor Cesar Molitas, Itogon Mayor Victorio Palangdan and Sablan Mayor Manuel Munar, Jr. In the distribution oof the cash aid to the identified beneficiaries in the remaining municipalities to complete the initial wave of the implementation of the TUPAD in the province for this year.
The lawmaker made sure that some P180 million for the TUPAD beneficiaries in the province will be included in the annual budget of the labor department for this year after ensuring that some P127 million was incorporated for the same program which were distributed to the recipients in the province’s 140 barangays last year.
For the first quarter of this year, Yap worked out with the labor department the release of some P30 million for the aforesaid number of TUPAD beneficiaries in the 13 municipalities where some P26.4 million was earmarked for the wages of the recipients while the remaining amount was used for their personal protective equipment (PPE) and group insurance.
Congressman Yap pointed out that the sustained distribution of the TUPAD benefits to the recipients is part of the realization of his previous commitment that all households in the province will be getting the appropriate assistance from the concerned government agencies courtesy of their respective programs, projects and activities geared towards helping the vulnerable and marginalized sectors cope up with the heavy impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, especially to their employment t and economic activities, for them to be able to continue uplifting the living condition of their families.
Aside from the benefits of the TUPAD, he disclosed that there are other members of the vulnerable sectors who will be getting other similar financial assistance from other programs of government agencies once they will not be able to qualify under the TUPAD criteria and that the same will be available to them in the coming months as there will be aggressive distribution of payouts in the various parts of the province up to the end of the year. By HENT