ILOILO — More than 8,000 indigent senior citizens in Passi City and the municipality of Sara have received a total of P24.4 million in social pension assistance for the first quarter of the year, as the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) intensified digital verification to prevent fraud and duplication.
A total of 8,137 beneficiaries — 3,826 from Passi City and 4,311 from Sara — each received P3,000, equivalent to P1,000 monthly stipend for the first three months of the year.
The payout was facilitated this week by the DSWD Region 6 under its Social Pension Program for Indigent Senior Citizens (SPISC), which provides financial assistance to elderly Filipinos who have no pension from government or private institutions and lack a permanent source of income or regular financial support from relatives.
Alongside the distribution, DSWD-6 also conducted an orientation and carried out digital verification of beneficiaries through the BBM Serbisyo platform.
DSWD-6 regional information technology officer II Anilo Luis Barrion underscored the importance of digital safeguards in ensuring that government aid reaches legitimate recipients.
“We use BBM Serbisyo to avoid fraud, duplication of names and deliver different social protection services efficiently,” Barrion said.
BBM Serbisyo aims to verify all client beneficiaries across the region, particularly those enrolled in major DSWD programs such as the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps), Walang Gutom Program (WGP), Sustainable Livelihood Program (SLP), Supplementary Feeding Program (SFP), and other social protection initiatives.
The agency said the integration of digital validation into payout activities strengthens transparency and accountability while ensuring that limited government resources are distributed to qualified and deserving senior citizens./PN
