Andanar Sees Need to Expand SAP Amid Rising Petrol Products Prices
Acting presidential spokesperson Martin Andanar sees the need to expand the Social Amelioration Program (SAP) amid the rising prices of petrol products.
The Communications Secretary believes that the existing SAP should be extended to offer relief to Filipinos from the ongoing spike in petroleum product prices caused by the Russian-Ukraine conflict. Andanar agreed that the monetary subsidies should be distributed, but he acknowledged the difficulty of obtaining funding for the program.
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The SAP is a monthly financial assistance program for low-income families whose livelihoods have been badly harmed by the Covid-19 outbreak. In the face of rising oil costs, Andanar renewed the Department of Finance’s (DOF) demand on parliament to suspend gasoline excise duties.
According to Andanar, this would be difficult since removing the excise tax will result in a significant loss of money for the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD’s) social services. As a result, it is critical to strike a balance between the issue and the remedy so that other government services are not adversely affected.
Previously, the Department of Finance was worried that granting the request to postpone gasoline excise duties would result in revenue loss and delayed economic recovery. Andanar stated that the ultimate decision would be made by the government’s economic team.
“Depende pa rin sa ating economic managers. Hindi naman ako kasama doon sa economic cluster pero logic would tell you that, that saan ka kukuha ng pera,” he said.
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