The Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor has already provided checks worth P18,000 for the beneficiaries of the Oplan Likas program to ensure they will have a merrier Christmas, an official said Wednesday.
Chairman and chief executive Alvin Feliciano said the program was in line with the disbursement of the interim shelter fund from the Department of Interior and Local Government to eliminate the informal settlers living in dangerous areas.
“This year we distributed checks to 832 beneficiaries. We are trying to finish and share it to add help especially to those who have lost their livelihoods in this pandemic,” he said.
Moreover, the PCUP has also asked the Land Bank of the Philippines for the beneficiaries not to go directly to the Malacañang branch but to the nearby LandBank branches within their areas.
In Metro Manila, the commission was able to give financial assistance to 212 people, while 122 others benefited in Laguna.
There were 90 beneficiaries in Rizal, 82 in Bulacan, and 22 in Cavite.
According to the PCUP Resettlement Unit, the awarding sometimes would take longer because people were no longer in the relocation sites or had incomplete requirements, but this time the process was faster and easier.
Feliciano vowed to ensure that the aid from the government would directly go to the urban poor.