Lawmaker denounces Yolanda fund irregularities

MANILA, Philippines - A party-list congressman decried yesterday persistent reports of alleged anomalies at the local level in the distribution of the emergency shelter assistance (ESA) to victims of Typhoon Yolanda by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).  

“What really grabbed our attention was the case of a municipal social welfare officer in Panay who pretended that the money for the ESA won’t be arriving for months, even if the cash was already there, and then offered the beneficiaries early payment in exchange for a 16-percent cut,” Arnel Ty of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers Association said.

“In effect, a number of beneficiaries may be getting scammed out of their ESA - by the individuals themselves directly overseeing the distribution of the money at the local level,” he said.

He said it was discovered that the erring municipal social welfare officer in Panay visited the beneficiaries, told them that the ESA had been delayed, and then brought in a purported lender who offered quick cash loans equal to 84 percent of the ESA, so long as the remaining 16 percent is withheld as interest payment for the supposed advance.

Ty did not identify the social worker and the area where the “scam” happened.

“It is also fairly possible that ESA-related scams like this involve or have the blessings of higher local officials trying to raise cash to pay for their election campaign-related expenses,” he said.

“This Panay incident tends to disprove reports of loan sharks preying on ESA beneficiaries. Loan sharks are not needed, because in many cases, the cash for the ESA may already be there,” he said.

The DSWD has stepped up the delivery of the ESA to Yolanda typhoon victims amid concerns that slow government spending may be dampening economic growth.

The shelter assistance amounts to P30,000 per family or individual whose house was destroyed, or P10,000 per family or individual whose dwelling was damaged.

The DSWD said it has so far distributed a total of P14.6 billion worth of ESA to 753,750 families in Yolanda-affected communities.