The Department of Social Welfare and Development on Tuesday welcomed the questions by senators on the Ayuda sa Kapos ang Kita Program or AKAP which is funded under the General Appropriations Act of 2024.

DSWD Undersecretary for Legislative Affairs Fatima Aliah Dimaporo said the agency respects the power of the purse by the Legislative branch and every Department in the Executive branch “will happily welcome any augmentation to its proposed budget.”

Undersecretary Dimaporo maintained that the DSWD is duty-bound to implement all the provisions of the GAA, which is a law, once it goes through the legislative mills of both houses of Congress.

“While we do not wish to question the wisdom of our legislators in both houses of Congress, who scrutinize the budget carefully and thoroughly, we are duty-bound to implement each and every line of the GAA faithfully. Doing otherwise is a dereliction of duty," Dimaporo pointed out.

The GAA, according to Dimaporo, is a law that enjoys a presumption of regularity especially since it has been scrutinized carefully by both houses of Congress.

“The DSWD does not intend nor has the power to question any provision of the said law,” Dimaporo said.

She added that the DSWD is still in the process of crafting the guidelines for AKAP, which shall provide financial assistance to individuals falling under the category of low-income to minimum-wage earners severely affected by the rising inflation.

“Not a single centavo for this line item in the GAA has been spent. Rest assured we will craft a set of guidelines that will benefit the intended beneficiaries as envisioned by Congress,” Dimaporo said.