Future gov’t subsidy programs must be digitized – DOF chief

August 25, 2020

The government's future subsidy programs must be digitized to minimize corruption, said Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez.

In a taped televised meeting with President Rodrigo Duterte in Davao City on Monday night, which was aired Tuesday morning, Dominguez gave an update on the "efficient and effective" implementation of the Small Subsidy Wage Program under the Bayanihan to Heal as One Act.

He attributed the successful enforcement of the program on the use of digital technology.

"We think all subsidy programs in the future should be digitized. In other words, do through digitalization of all transactions," he said.

The DOF, along with the state-run Social Security System, under the SBWS distributed a total of P46 billion to 3.1 million employees of small businesses affected by work stoppage when Duterte placed most parts of the country under the enhanced community quarantine from mid-March to June.

The SBWS was implemented with the applicant-beneficiaries having zero face-to-face contact with government employees handling this subsidy for displaced workers of COVID-affected small businesses.

Dominguez said that direct cash aid distribution should be done through banks or e-wallets.

"It will be difficult to to do irregular activities by computer. Nobody can keep the cash so that intended beneficiaries, the employees of the small companies were the ones who received the subsidy," he added.

The DOF chief recalled that when they were implementing the SBWS, the officials of the concerned government agencies were meeting two or three times a day to ensure that the system worked.

They also brought in experts from the private sector, he said.

Under the Bayanihan to Recover As One Act or Bayanihan 2, which is up for Duterte's signature, Dominguez said they included a provision that as much as possible all the assistance to the people should be given through banks or other forms of electronic remittances to prevent corruption. Celerina Monte/DMS