Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Spokesperson Asec. Irene Dumlao confirmed on Thursday that the Lifeline Rate Subsidy, which either discounts or completely waives beneficiaries’ electrical charges, is being shouldered by better-off consumers, although she assured the amount was typically mere centavos.
In an interview on Balansyado, Dumlao said that beneficiaries—who are either Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) beneficiaries or the elderly—who do not exceed 50 kWh in power consumption are not charged at all.
Meanwhile, those who do not exceed 51-75 kWh in their monthly consumption are provided a 35 percent discount. Lastly, beneficiary-consumers who use up 71-100 kWh are given a 20 percent discount. The discount is automatically applied when they pay their bills.
Dumlao, however, assured that contributions that go to Lifeline Rate beneficiaries do not amount to much, depending on a customer’s power consumption.
She said that in her own latest electrical bill, only ₱0.40 was added to fund the subsidy. The spokesperson said she had never heard of anyone having to pay ₱100 or so.
“Wala pa akong nakitang ganoon kalaking halaga kasi may certain percentage ‘yan of your monthly consumption. May formula na ginagawa ‘yung DOE (Department of Energy) at ERC (Energy Regulatory Commission),” she said.
At most, contributions could reach up to ₱50, she agreed.
“Depende kasi doon sa consumption. Kasi kung halimbawa kung ang consumption mo less than ₱2,000, makikita mo na ₱0.24 centavos lang,” Dumlao said.
The social welfare assistant secretary said beneficiaries only make up over 130,000 households in a country of over 3 million households, and said that the program was anchored in law.
“Ito po ay programa na naka-anchor sa batas. Of course, sumusunod po tayo doon sa umiiral na panuntunan,” she said.
Through a data-sharing agreement, the DSWD provided the DOE and ERC a list of beneficiaries, from which they identified consumers who use up less than 50 kWh per month, 51-75 kWh per month, and so on.
