MANILA, Philippines — Legislators have infused an additional P9.5 billion into the line item funding the Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situation or AICS program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), The STAR has learned.
A review of the budget documents released on Friday showed that a total of P44.744 billion has been allocated to the DSWD under the line item “Protective Services for Individuals and Families in Difficult Circumstances (PSIFDC).”
In the original 2025 proposed budget, the Marcos administration only requested P35.186 billion for PSIFDC. This included a fraction for personnel services, with all of the funds lodged under the DSWD Central Office.
However, the General Appropriations Act of 2025 or the approved national budget showed that PSIFDC under DSWD Central Office would have a budget of P40.418 billion, with another P4.326 billion directly under the DSWD Regional Office in NCR.
An earlier press release from the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) said the AICS initiative is “an important element” of the PSIFDC program.
Last year, only P34.277 billion was allocated to PSIFDC, with all funds lodged under the DSWD Central Office. Additional funds were reportedly released late last year to supplement the program.
Details of the AICS program implementation for 2025 have yet to be released. The DSWD has yet to respond to an inquiry into the increase in the budget.
In an interview with “Storycon” on One News on Jan. 3, DBM Undersecretary Rolando Toledo said the AICS was not placed under conditional implementation because it is already a regular program of the DSWD, unlike the Ayuda sa Kapos and Kita Program o AKAP.
AKAP, he said, was placed under conditional implementation because the funding was directly added by legislators during budget deliberations.
“This is what we call changes and insertions in the budget,” he said, referring to the P26.159 billion allocated for AKAP this year.
It was unclear if Toledo was aware of the additional allocation given to PSIFDC, which is the source of the budget for the AICS program.
Duplication
In the same interview, the DBM official said the government “moving forward” may also look into how AICS is being implemented, specifically on the issue that its beneficiaries are barred from receiving aid under AKAP.
In his veto message, Marcos said he was compelled to put AKAP under conditional implementation “to ensure that the government assistance is not merely a provisional solution to a persistent issue.”
He directed the DSWD, the Department of Labor and Employment and the National Economic and Development Authority to craft revised guidelines for the program to ensure that AKAP would be “geared towards more strategic interventions leading to the long-term improvement of the lives of the qualified beneficiaries, while guarding against misuse and duplicative and fragmented benefits.”
In a separate interview with One News’ “Storycon” on Jan. 2, former finance undersecretary Cielo Magno called for a public audit on the implementation of AKAP last year.
Magno, a UP economics professor, said she received complaints from some AKAP beneficiaries that they received amounts lower than what was indicated in the document they signed.
“We should have a people’s audit or public audit on how AKAP funds were spent in 2024. Release the list, all the names (of the beneficiaries) and the amount they received so we can set the record straight,” she said in Filipino.
She maintained that AKAP may also be challenged before the Supreme Court, citing the supposed intervention of politicians in the distribution of the financial assistance.
“We can bring this to the Supreme Court. Why do our congressmen and senators have to be a part of the implementation of this program? Why are they the ones who distribute it?” she said.