President Marcos hails power aid for poor

MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos emphasized the need to make government assistance accessible to Filipinos as he hailed the giving of automatic lifeline subsidy for electricity users who are also recipients of the state’s cash transfer program.

Marcos said families who are beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program or 4Ps would automatically get a lifeline subsidy and would not be charged for the first 50-kilowatt hours of their electricity consumption.

The subsidy is expected to lower the monthly electric bills of 4Ps beneficiaries and allow them to set aside more money for food, medicines and other needs, he added.

“This is the type of governance we are promoting. Filipinos should not be chasing assistance. The assistance should come to the Filipinos,” the President posted on Facebook yesterday.

Last month, the Department of Energy, Department of Social Welfare and Development and the Energy Regulatory Commission inked a joint resolution institutionalizing the automatic registration of qualified 4Ps households of the Lifeline Rate Subsidy Program.

The resolution aims to streamline procedures, harmonize requirements and address administrative barriers that have prevented eligible households from joining the subsidy program.

The 4Ps beneficiaries who are in the latest list certified by the DSWD will be automatically registered under the subsidy program, subject to data matching with customer records of distribution utilities.