MANILA — The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Saturday terminated the online registration for its education cash assistance program.

DSWD spokesperson Romel Lopez said the termination was due to ballooning numbers of applicants, which have so far reached 2 million as of writing.

Lopez clarified that students who received text confirmation on their online registrations can still receive their cash aid until Sept. 24.

DSWD Secretary Erwin Tulfo and House Speaker Martin Romualdez are set to have a dialogue next week to discuss plans on how to continue implementing the student aid program.

Meanwhile, more than 100 parents queued outside the Department of Social Welfare and Development's (DSWD) National Capital Region (NCR) office in Sampaloc, Manila on Saturday, the 4th payout day of the agency's educational cash aid.

A number of those who queued outside the DSWD office were unregistered and did not have a text confirmation of their scheduled payout, despite the department's repeated calls to apply for the assistance online.

According to DSWD personnel, many of the parents lined up outside their office as early as Friday evening. Some of the walk-in applicants were not accommodated.

But the agency noted that the line on Saturday was "manageable" as police officers also assisted in crowd control.

The DSWD has 3 payout centers in NCR: the central office in Sampaloc, the Valenzuela City Amphitheater, and at the San Juan City Hall.

Only 500 beneficiaries were expected to be accommodated at the central office on Saturday, 1,500 others in Valenzuela City, and another 100 would be processed in San Juan City.

Outside Metro Manila, the DSWD's cash aid will be paid out in 224 venues across the country, with 19 of these in Geographically Isolated and Disadvantaged Areas (GIDA) where payouts are done offsite.

The department aims to pay out more than 116,000 students nationwide on Saturday.

So far, more than 220,000 beneficiaries have been paid out since distribution of the educational assistance started on Aug. 20, with a total payout amounting to over P565 million.

Payouts will continue until Sept. 24.

— report from Jose Carretero, ABS-CBN News

RELATED VIDEO:

Watch more News on iWantTFC