Ferdinand Alexander "Sandro" Marcos, Senior Deputy Majority Leader and Ilocos Norte First District Representative, warned village officials in the province not to collect any payment from the issuance of a certificate of indigency.
Following reports in his district about some village chiefs in Laoag City allegedly selling indigency certificates to their constituents, the president's son issued the warning.
Last March, Marcos' office, in collaboration with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), launched a food subsidy program that entitles an indigent recipient to at least PHP3,000.
This is in addition to the lawmaker's other assistance programs, which include educational, medical, cash, transportation, and burial assistance, among others.
Due to the large number of local residents wishing to receive various forms of assistance in his district, Marcos promised that the next payout distribution, particularly in urban areas such as Laoag City, will be done in clusters to avoid long lines and large crowds.
He assured all those in need of assistance, regardless of party affiliation, that they would receive it.
According to the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, an individual is considered indigent if he or she has no source of income or if the source of income is insufficient to meet the family's basic needs.
Marcos also intends to request additional workforce or plantilla positions at the DSWD in order to expedite the distribution of assistance to the less fortunate.
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Marcos' office previously stated that it could only assist 500 beneficiaries per day for educational assistance and 500 beneficiaries for food assistance.

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Selling certificate of indigency gets warning from local officials