MANILA, Philippines — A House leader insisted on Tuesday, December 17, that the Ayuda sa Kapos ang Kita Program or AKAP is not a form of “pork barrel.”
In a chance interview, Rep. Jil Bongalon (Ako Bicol Party), vice chair of the appropriations committee and member of the bicam committee, clarified that Congress plays no role in disbursing funds for the program’s financial assistance.
“Maybe more on requesting, following up... But then again, since there is an allocation, there is a budget, we have to implement that so that people will benefit from it,” he said.
The bicam committee approved allocating P21 billion in AKAP funds to the House and P5 billion to the Senate for 2025.
Bongalon explained that as legislators representing city districts or sectors, they are also concerned about whether applicants from their constituencies have received the requested financial assistance.
House lawmakers will inform the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), which oversees the AKAP program, to implement it in areas where it is needed, he added.
For it to be considered a pork barrel, he clarified, the allocation of funds must be decided after the budget has been provided — a process he referred to as the “post-determination” of the program.
In essence, he explained that while both the House and the Senate can suggest potential AKAP beneficiary areas, it is ultimately up to the DSWD to validate the recipients and decide whether to implement the program.
But what is AKAP? AKAP, a government program under the DSWD, provides financial assistance to individuals with limited earnings.
A registered DSWD social worker assesses each applicant’s situation and recommends the type and amount of assistance to be granted, if any.
The program is available only to those earning minimum wage or less and not already benefiting from other DSWD programs for the impoverished.
According to the DSWD, the assistance varies based on the applicant’s specific needs and may include rice, food, medical, funeral or cash relief.
In some cases, the DSWD may issue a guarantee letter to service providers to cover costs on behalf of the beneficiary.
Approved beneficiaries for financial assistance may receive cash from P1,000 to P10,000.
Bongalon stressed that AKAP is not a form of pork barrel or a lump sum personally controlled by lawmakers to decide its allocation and purpose. Instead, he explained, Congress’ role is to oversee how the program is implemented.
Oversight power
The lawmaker said Congress only allocates funds for the program and practices its “oversight power,” but does not implement it.
Since AKAP is under the DSWD, Bongalon said it is DSWD who “solely implements” the program and that legislators have “no say” in it, except in its budget.
"In fact, no beneficiary will receive funds out of this program if it is not verified or validated by a registered social worker of DSWD," he added in Filiipino.
Exercising Congress' oversight power, Bongalon said they must assess whether AKAP and other programs are "responsive" to determine if their budget for the following year should be increased, decreased or abolished.
“If we will just leave it, if no one will observe and monitor … If we’ll just leave it solely to the DSWD, what will be our basis to increase the budget, have a budget cut or even delete or abolish the program?” he said.
The Senate initially removed the AKAP budget allocation for 2025, proposing to merge it with the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation (AICS) program.
However, the bicameral committee reinstated the allocation and divided it between the two chambers of Congress, though not equally.