EDITORIAL - The problem with ayuda

Last week, the bicameral conference committee approved the final version of House of Representatives Bill 10800 also known as the proposed ?6.352 trillion 2025 national budget, this includes the restoration of ?26 billion allocated for the Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP).

We can say this is both good news and bad news. The good news is that some people are getting money; the bad news is that it might be money better spent for something else.

There is no doubt that some people do need government aid. The problem is are we really sure that money is going the things that they really need?

There is no shortage of stories regarding government aid being appropriated by drunken husbands who gamble it away, or families that use it to buy unnecessary luxuries instead of essential goods, or even of people who used it to buy drugs.

There is also no shortage of stories of such aid going to people who really don’t need it; like that aid recipient who was later found to actually own several houses.

Another problem with giving ayuda is that it teaches people to become too dependent on the government. "Hayahay ang mga tambay" is something that netizens frequently say when they hear about such aid.

Of course, the source of these funds is taxpayer’s money and usually the beneficiaries are those who don’t have to pay taxes. See why some people are bitter about this?

In particular it’s the middle income class that bears the burden of such payments, because those in the lower income classes aren’t taxed, and those in the higher income classes have many options to avoid paying taxes. And, ironically, it’s those who pay for such aid who don’t have access to it at all.

There are other ways to help the poor, other ways than to directly give them money which may not be used properly for its intended purpose.