More thoughtful people outside government are not as enthusiastic. In a study released this week, Dr. Celia Reyes of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies concluded that the limited scope and shallow goals of the centerpiece Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program will not make a dent in the fight against poverty, unless education is secured and employment is generated for the children of the beneficiaries. The obvious link between poverty, education and employment is simply ignored by government. But the new study insists that, more than just monthly handouts of up to P1,400, “a package of interventions, including those related to livelihood,” is required. President Noynoy Aquino, of course, has simply decided to widen the coverage of his borrowed handout program, which he wants expanded to include 5.2 million families by 2016. Currently, 3.9 million families are supposedly benefiting from the scheme, for which P44 billion was allocated last year.
