by Sheryll Jane Sanico

Sta. Maria, Davao Del Sur (6 November) -- "Nagapasalamat kami og dako diri sa Sta. Maria nga naapil kami sa 4Ps. Kining kwarta nga madawat sa mga lumad sa Sta. Maria dako gyud og matabang sa ilang mga iso. Ang akong hagit lamang kanila nga gamiton nila sa tarong ang kwarta nga dawaton nila sa 4Ps (We are grateful that Sta. Maria was identified by 4Ps. The money that the Sta. Maria folks will claim is a great help to their children. My only challenge is for them to spend the money wisely)," Sta. Maria Mayor Rudy Mariscal stressed.

4Ps not only assisted the beneficiaries financially but also allowed them to do their part as parents by looking after the medical needs of their children. The money they receive can also help augment the economic status of their community. 4Ps, truly, is not only pro-poor, pro-people, pro-health and education but also pro-community.

4Ps Builds Responsible Parents

Dayana Monsad, 67, of Barangay Kinilidan found a partner in 4Ps. Dayana's husband died six years ago and left her with their nine children. All her nine children are married and have families of their own. Right now, Dayana takes care of her grandchildren, 12 year-old Laila who is in Grade 3 and 7 year-old Melanie who is in Grade 2. Her grandchildren's mother, her daughter, died a year ago because of severe illness. The father since then went to Manila and left his children with Dayana.

Dayana sells copra for a living. She shares she only earns at most P1,000 - P2,000.00 a month. "Gina-paningkamutan na lang nako nga maigo ang kwarta para sa among mga gastuhonon kada bulan (I just stretch our budget to cater our monthly needs)."

She shares that 4Ps is the first government program that came to their municipality. She was cynical at first when people came to their barangay to identify poor households. But for the welfare of her grandchildren, she put away her cynicism and opened up her heart to 4Ps.

"Pasalamat gyud mi sa programa. Makatabang gyud kini og dako sa pag-eskwela ug kahimtang panlawas sa akong mga apo (We are thankful to the program. 4Ps will really help in my grandchildren's education and health needs)," Dayana added.

Fifty-four year-old Carmelo Sulong of Barangay Datu Daligasao has six children, five of which are already married, the last one is only seven years old and is in Grade One.

Carmelo is a widower. His wife died seven years ago. Since then, he solely raised their children. Carmelo owns a small lot where he plants corn for consumption. He lives in a far-flung barangay. It would typically take them one day just to reach poblacion. This is one main reason why they decided to grow their own crops since they could not go down to the poblacion to buy food.

Maayo nga programa ang 4Ps kay makita gyud nimo nga para kini sa kaayohan sa mga bata. Nagapasalamat pud ako kay matabangan gyud ang pag-eskwela sa akong anak ug uban pang panginahanglanon sa ilang kahimtang panlawas (4P is a good program as you will really see that it is for the children's welfare. I am thankful because it will really help my children on their educational and health needs)," Carmelo said.

Carmelo is hopeful that 4Ps will be the way for his youngest child, Carmelo Jr, to finish is studies and be secure with a better future.

Young couple - Arcel, 28, and Florante Allawian, 25, already have three kids. Their eldest is Francine who is 4 years old, Kent Allia, 3 years old and Angel Margareth, the youngest at 6 months.

Florante does not have a permanent job. He sometimes works as a casual laborer in their barangay.

Wala kami nagdahom nga maapil mi sa programa. Nagapasalamat mi og dako kay makatabang gyud kini sa among mga anak. Para kanako maayo nga programa ang 4Ps kay dili lang kini mohatag og hinabang pinansyal sa amoa apan gina-pahinumdom pud kanamo ang among mga responsibilidad isip mga ginikanan (We did not expect that we will be identified by the program. We are just too happy and thankful because 4Ps will be of a huge help to our children. For me, 4Ps is a good government program because it will not only assist us financially but will also remind us of our responsibilities as parents)," Arcel stated.

4Ps creates a healthy mind in a healthy body

"Makita gyud nimo nga ignorante pa ang mga tawo sa Sta. Maria sa importansya sa pag-bisita sa ilang mga health centers. Sa usa nako katuig nga pag-silbi dri sa Sta. Maria, karon lang ko kakita og daghan nga tawo nga miadto gyud sa amoa aron magpa-check-up ug magpa-immunize ug magpa-purga sa ilang mga bata (One can really notice that the people of Sta. Maria are still ignorant on the importance of visiting their health centers regularly.

In my one year of service here in Sta. Maria, this is the first time that I have seen a huge number of people who really came to us for check-ups and to have their children immunized and dewormed)," said Municipal Health Officer Dr. Freinelle Rojo.

There are 22 health centers and 11 midwives in the municipality. Each midwife will have to handle two barangays. Dr. Rojo shared that some midwives who are incharge of far-flung barangays find it hard to visit the area on a regular basis because of transportation dilemmas.

She added that people's naivete and lack of education on the importance of health, nutrition, pre-natal services and preventive check-ups, and the barangay's remote location are two of the major factors why residents of Sta. Maria do not visit their health centers regularly.

"Ang amoa na lang himuon mao ang paghatag og serbisyong medical kada-OTC (over-the-counter payment) aron madakop ang mga tawo kay munaog man gyud na sila og sentro para mukuha sa ilang kwarta (Our strategy is to provide medical services during OTCs to be able to serve people from far-off barangays since they would surely troop to the poblacion to claim their grants)," Dr. Rojo remarked.

Dr. Rojo is positive that with 4Ps the beneficiaries will now visit their local health centers religiously. "They will not only be educated on the importance of health but 4Ps will also teach them to be responsible parents."

4Ps Augments Local Economy

4Ps Over-the-Counter (OTC) release of grants is also an economy booster for Sta. Maria. The local stores have benefited abundantly during payouts. "Nalipay gyud kaayo mi kay first time ni nga ing-ani kadaghan og tao nga namalit.

Kasagaran man gud fiesta lang ug pasko ang daghang tao (We are very happy. This is the first time a lot of people flock the stores to buy goods. Normally, people only gather here during fiestas and Christmas)," Roger Penaroya, an owner of a local store in Sta. Maria said.

EM Supermarket in Sta. Maria probably has the biggest profit. Elgie Mercado, owner, said during the first day of the OTC they earned P221,000.00, a huge jump from their usual P51,000.00 daily earnings. "Salamat jud kaayo 4Ps! Daghan kaayo mo og natabangan tungod ani nga programa (Thank you so much 4Ps! You have helped a lot of people because of this program)," exclaimed Elgie.

The Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) conducted the OTC release for the 4,419 4Ps beneficiaries in Sta. Maria, Davao del Sur. Sta. Maria is one of the eight areas of 4Ps in its Set 2 of implementation in the region. Currently, there are 35,880 grantees in Set 2 for Davao Region.