Two senators support giving continuous aid to the needy, but the assistance should have limits in consideration also to the government, they said.
Their opinion was in reaction to the P4.1-billion budget released by the government for another round of aid.
“I think we have to practice talaga yung right balancing act here because, we can give as much as we can, we should also save as much as we could… so that we are also prepared doon sa mga hindi natin inaasahan na maaring mangyari,” Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva in a news briefing said Tuesday.
Indigents should still be prioritized, as well as those who have lost their jobs or been struck by disasters or calamities, he said.
But what the government should also remember are its “limited resources", Villanueva said.
“Mas magiging careful tayo sa paggastos, sa pagbibigay ng ayuda. Lalong-lalo na kung ito ay masyadong kailangan o hindi priority,” Villanueva said.
But for Senator Ronald “Bato” dela Rosa, all the help possible should be extended to the poor.
Asked if there is still a need to distribute aid, dela Rosa said: “May need talaga.”
“Kayo nga nasa middle class kayo, kailangan pa rin ninyo ng ayuda. Aminin, wag nang mag-deny. Kung merong ayuda mas naganda di ba?” dela Rosa stressed.
The senator, however, acknowledged that continuous distribution of aid can also promote the culture of mendicancy.
Still, aid for as long as people need help, should be given, he said, likening it to the US government's social welfare program.
“Hangga’t kaya. Huwag nating ipagkait sa kanila yan kung meron tayong maibigay… meaning, non-stop ito. Kasi mandato ng gobyerno yan na alagaan ang kanilang mga citizens,” he stressed.
The ideal situation, he said, is to give jobs to the poor instead of aid.