DSWD: ‘Family camps’ for street kids not new

MANILA, Philippines - Sen. Nancy Binay scored yesterday the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for hiding street dwellers of Metro Manila during the visit of Pope Francis.

In a Senate hearing, Binay, chair of the committee on social justice, welfare and development, questioned the timing of DSWD’s move to bring the street dwellers to Chateau Royale resort in Batangas during the papal visit.

Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman admitted to the committee that the move was timed to clear major areas in Manila and Pasay City of street dwellers when the pope was here.

But Soliman explained that DSWD gathered the street dwellers at Chateau Royale for the agency’s family camp, which was meant to introduce homeless families and street children to the government’s modified conditional cash transfer (CCT) program.

She admitted that DSWD also asked street dwellers to join the outings during the World Economic Forum last year.

Soliman said DSWD had sponsored six family camps for poor families not included in the national targeting system.

In August 2011, the DSWD spent P525,000 for families at the Boys Town. Another outing of 127 street children at the Villa Diaz Resort cost the government P180,000.

The DSWD expanded the family camping program as more families were invited to join the seminar at God’s Love Family resort in May 2012, which cost P1.44 million.

Three batches of families comprising 3,600 people also participated in the family camp at Island Cove Cavite in November 2012, costing P26 million. In May 2014, 197 families participated in the family camp amounting to P4.7 million.

The government also spent P4.7 million for the family camp at Chateau Royale resort during the papal visit.

A number of those who attended the family camp at Chateau Royale told the committee that they were enticed to join in their desire to become part of the government’s modified CCT program.

But Helen Adolfo, one of the street dwellers, complained that social workers limited the supply of milk and diapers for her five-month-old baby, whom she brought to the family camp. She was also unable to get medicine for her baby who had the flu, apparently due to the cold weather in the province.– With Danny Dangcalan