Senate deletes AKAP from 2025 budget

MANILA, Philippines — The Senate has deleted the P39.8-billion allocation for the Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) inserted in the proposed 2025 budget by the House of Representatives, Sen. Imee Marcos confirmed on Tuesday.

During the plenary debate on the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s proposed P233.86-billion budget, budget sponsor Marcos said the AKAP funding was realigned to the DSWD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program.

“I deleted it entirely. I proposed to merge the AICS and AKAP and pool it into one standby fund for those in need. That way, there will be no dispute or jealousy over the fund allocation,” Marcos said.

The proposed merger of AKAP and AICS funds will be discussed at the bicameral conference committee, where the House contingent is expected to defend its budget insertion for a separate DSWD project criticized as the lawmakers’ pork barrel, Marcos said.

“While we recognize the necessity of immediate relief by direct financial assistance, it is imperative that we focus also on social protection initiatives, such as the Sustainable Livelihood Program and the Kalahi-CIDSS, which foster long-term development and self-reliance rather than creating a new ayuda (cash aid) nation. We don’t want that anymore,” she said.

Asked by Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada if senators can join the AKAP distribution usually led by House lawmakers, Marcos said senators should be welcome to “gatecrash” it.

Qualified to avail of the merged AKAP-AICS program are people subsisting below the poverty line, unemployed, self-employed, seasonally and periodically employed and those in crisis or emergencies, Marcos noted.

Meanwhile, Marcos reported to the plenary that the DSWD has no ample funding to provide pensions to around 600,000 senior citizens who have been on the waitlist since 2023.

“We have a huge debt to our senior citizens who are not yet paid their pension because of a shortage in the budget,” Marcos said.

The Senate wrapped up its plenary debates on the P6.352-trillion 2025 national budget yesterday.

Individual amendments to the budget will be proposed by the Senate next week.