TACLOBAN CITY – House Minority Leader Marcelino “Nonoy” Libanan has rejected calls to scrap the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), insisting that the conditional cash transfer scheme has consistently delivered results in reducing poverty and improving health and education among poor households.
“The program works. We just need to give our poorest families a stronger push so they can stand on their own permanently,” said Libanan, a 4Ps Party-list representative, in a statement issued on Monday, August 11.
His remarks came after Senator Erwin Tulfo suggested replacing the program with livelihood capital assistance. Libanan agreed on providing skills training and livelihood support but stressed these should complement—not replace—the cash grants tied to education, health, and family development requirements.
Launched in 2008 and institutionalized in 2019, the 4Ps will receive P64.2 billion in the 2025 budget, benefitting millions of families. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recently reported that 1.5 million households have “graduated” from poverty under the program.
(LIZBETH ANN A. ABELLA)
