QC wants new rule for 4Ps benefit

MANILA, Philippines - The Quezon City Council has approved a resolution urging the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to require beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) to participate in barangay-led programs on environment preservation as an additional condition for their continued receipt of the cash grant.

The measure, principally authored by Councilor Estrella Valmocina, requires beneficiaries to engage in activities related to environmental protection for at least four hours every month. Such activities include planting or nurturing of at least 10 trees or mangroves, clearing of clogged waterways, and cleaning assigned areas within their respective barangays.

A copy of the approved resolution has already been sent by the city council to the office of DSWD Secretary Corazon  Soliman, who also sits as national program director of the 4Ps.

The conditional cash transfer program, more popularly known as the 4Ps, was launched by the national government to help fulfill the country’s commitment to satisfactorily meet the Millennium Development Goals set by the United Nations, the seventh of which is to “ensure environmental sustainability.”