by Jeanevive D. Abangan
She buys food for the entire family, shoes for her son, vitamins for herself and her young children.
A parent leader and barangay health worker in Talaingod, Davao del Norte, Leah Alvarez got teary-eyed when she confessed having bought goodies for her children, for the first time, upon receiving a P7,000 lump-sum cash grant late last month through the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (Pantawid Pamilya).
She was told not to cry for she’s carrying a baby, but she couldn’t help it as she told stories how life got so hard to get by daily in sitio Malapanit of Barangay Sto. Nino, Talaingod.
Aside from raising up six children, she’s expecting another one, two months from now. Her family depends so much on planting corn for their daily consumption, but rat infestation has threatened people’s sources of subsistence in Talaingod.
“Gipangaon ang among tanum ug mga ilaga, dili mi makatanum. (Rats are feasting on our crops. We can’t go planting.),” she said.
In the midst of this situation, Leah sees it as timely that the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has released the Pantawid Pantawid cash through a Land Bank cash card given to beneficiaries.
Leah also pins hope on the program for her children to go on schooling and get nourishment. “Dili ko gusto mapareho sila namo nga walay edukasyon. (I don’t like them to be like us, uneducated),” she said referring to her husband and herself.
Leah was one of the Talaingod Ata-Manobo residents who trooped, Wednesday, to the provincial government center in Mankilam, Tagum City to get their Pantawid cash grants from a Land Bank ATM machine installed outside the provincial employees’ cafeteria.
She was with her group members who came all the way from far-flung sitios in Talaingod. Leah’s home-place is about 12 kilometers from the barangay center but other members of her group live much farther away.
Among the crowd were some Ata women chewing betel nut and wearing the distinguishing red Ata-Manobo costume.
A social worker accompanied the Talaingod Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries withdraw their cash grants from the ATM. While others were simply sitting around with their kids, some watched closely at how the money came out of the ATM machine.
Davao del Norte Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office (PSWDO) head Arlene Semblante said the cash grant release through cash cards has in a way empowered the beneficiaries.
“They will no longer remain ignorant,” she said. “After all the criticisms against the program, it has come out helpful,” she added.
PSWDO has listed a total of 7,466 Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries in 2010, of whom 1,936 are Talaingod beneficiaries residing in barangays Sto. Nino, Palma Gil and Dagohoy.
Semblante revealed that close to P100 million was released to Davao del Norte Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries in 2010.
The amount of cash grants will run about P200 million this year as the number of beneficiaries in Davao del Norte will increase to a total of 23,581, Semblante said.
Other Davao del Norte first district barangays which have Pantawid Pamilya beneficiaries are Mesaoy, New Corella, 467; Gupitan, Kapalong, 467; Cambanogoy, Asuncion , 453.
In Davao del Norte second district, Sto. Tomas Poblacion has 385; barangay Ising, Carmen, 414; barangays Cabayangan and Dujali of B.E. Dujali, 540; Miranda of Island Garden City of Samal, 487.
