The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) stressed local officials should distribute the government assistance for NCR Plus residents correctly and on time.
The mayors only have 15 days to distribute the aid in cash or 30 days in kind, according to DILG Undersecretary Martin Diño.
Violators could face prosecution, he said.
“Hindi lang po namin kayo ipatatanggal, ang gusto ni Presidente makulong na kayo, ‘yung mga gagawa ng pamimili, ‘yung iba kokotongan pa ang binigyan,” he sain in an interview with ABS-CBN Teleradyo.
Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, and Rizal have been placed under enhanced community quarantine until April 11 to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
In Navotas, the P199,480,000 million total cash assistance they received from the national government is set to roll out on Wednesday.
“Bukas po target namin. Subukan namin mag start tomorrow, cash po,” said Mayor Toby Tiangco on TeleRadyo Tuesday morning.
Tiangco explained that assistance to the affected residents should be provided immediately so they decided to provide the cash assistance.
“Kung bibili pa kami, magrerepack pa kami. Ang tagal pa ng proseso. Hindi naman madaling mag distribute pag ECQ kasi hindi pwedeng magdikit-dikit ang tao,” he said.
DILG warns local officials warned against improper aid distribution
Tiangco added that every family does not only need food.
In Caloocan, aid from the national government also arrived on Monday and they are arranging it to be distributed on Wednesday.
On TeleRadyo, Mayor Oscar Malapitan said that he also has his own aid coming from the local government.
“Wala kaming pipiliin dito, mayaman o mahirap. Nung isang linggo pa kami nagsimula pero marami pang area hindi pa namin nakokober,” he said.
The aid consisted of five kilos of rice and canned goods, the mayor said.
For the people of Manila, they chose to give cash to those who were listed in the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) then and beneficiaries who were previously placed on the waiting list.
“Cash po para may elbow room ‘yung mga kababayan natin. Meron silang choices kung ano ang importante para sila ay makapamili kung anong uunahing pangangailangan,” said Manila Mayor Isko Moreno.
Bayan Muna, on the other hand, criticized the delay in the arrival of aid.
According to House Deputy Minority Leader Carlos Zarate, the P1,000 to P4,000 assistance per household is not enough for the 2 -week ECQ, especially since it is not yet certain whether it will be extended.