THE city government of Manila announced on Monday the release of P1.76-billion financial assistance to stimulate the local economy as oil prices surge amid the ongoing armed conflict in the Middle East.
“Starting today, we will release, to stimulate, to augment, to cushion our situation in the City of Manila, amounting to P1.7 billion. “We have to account for this in the future, our obligations over the coming weeks. But somehow, it (funds) are already in the hands of the barangays,” Manila Mayor Francisco Moreno Domagoso said in Filipino.
“The total direct individuals is more or less about 330,000 of them, Manileños. That is amounting to about 15 percent of our population. And most of these are the heads of the family, that may have what you call a trickle-down effect,” he added.
The financial package, which combines releases from the general fund and trust fund, was meant to inject liquidity into the city economy by accelerating payouts to residents, students, public sector workers, and barangays across the capital city.
Domagoso explained that raising the buying capacity of the community will benefit the local businesses such that jobs will be protected.
Meanwhile, the city government will also release P51.129 million in educational assistance for 17,043 students of Manila’s public universities.
Financial assistance will also be provided to national government agencies operating in the city, with P103.28 million allocated for 16,425 beneficiaries under a city-funded assistance program.
Likewise, P71.319 million in PhilHealth professional fee sharing will be released to 6,495 healthcare workers from Manila’s city-run hospitals and the Manila Health Department.
