Complying with the requirement on the use of the Bayanihan Grant, the Local Government Unit of Tacurong City disclosed to the public a report on fund utilization as well as the status of implementation of its programs and projects related to COVID-19.
Aside from being posted on conspicuous public places, the report is also posted on the LGU’s website www.tacurong.gov.ph as required by the Department of Budget and Management.
LGU Tacurong City received P48,330,974.00 assistance from the national government in April purposely to boost its war chest against the COVID-19 pandemic.
The fund assistance is equivalent to a one-month Internal Revenue Allotment (IRA) of the city and part of the “Bayanihan Grant to Cities and Municipalities” provided for under Local Budget Circular 125 issued by the DBM.
The grant is one of the various emergency measures ordered by President Rodrigo Duterte to respond to the crisis brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.
As of June 30, P48.25-Million or 99.83% of the Bayanihan Grant for Tacurong has already been obligated, while P25.46-Million or 52.69% was already disbursed or released as payment to various program expenses.
Out of the funding, the LGU spent P31-Million for food assistance and other relief goods for almost 30 thousand households in 20 barangays of the city. The assistance consisted of seven kilograms of rice and P500 worth of gift certificate per household. The LGU partnered with local businesses in setting up rolling stores in the barangays to provide grocery items in exchange for the gift certificates.
In the subsequent wave of food assistance distribution, each of the households in Tacurong received five kilograms of rice.
Meanwhile, more than P5-M was allocated for the construction of a 28-room isolation facility in Barangay Upper Katungal that will accommodate the returning OFWs and locally stranded individuals.
A big chunk of the fund was also spent for purchase of isolation facility equipment and supplies as well as procurement of vitamins and supplies.
Purchase of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) for health workers and other frontliners also took a sizable portion of the grant.
City Budget Officer Imelda Pamplona said that the LGU has been religiously complying with the requirements of the DBM on the utilization of the funding and added that another status report will be released to the public at the end of this month.
Mayor Angelo ‘Roncal’ Montilla is grateful to the funding support of the national government saying that it was a big augmentation to the calamity fund of the LGU that quickly ran dry.
“Before the release of the Bayanihan Grant, our LGU has been preparing to realign local funds for use in our COVID-19 responses. Good thing it did not happen for we already anticipate the negative effect that it will create to our other priority programs”, Montilla said. (ASFreno, LGU Information)
For the full details on fund utilization, kindly check out this link:
http://tacurong.gov.ph/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/BAYANIHAN-GRANT-TO-CITIES-AND-MUNICIPALITIES.pdf