120 BPAT members to receive P9T

CEBU, Philippines - After three-month delay, 120 members of the Barangay Peacekeeping Action Team (BPAT) in Cebu City will soon receive P9,000 each as their allowances from January to March this year.

BPAT president Deogracia Sumaylo said the delay was due to the lack of important documents, particularly a detailed financial plan.

"As president karon sa BPAT, nagtan-aw ko ug nalooy ko kay nadugay og process ang ilang allowance karon. (As the current present of BPAT, I see their plight and sympathize with them over the delay of their allowance)," Sumaylo, who only became BPAT president last March, said in an interview yesterday.

She added that right after she assumed BPAT presidency, she worked on the payroll of the BPAT volunteers for the months of January to March. Sumaylo then submitted the payroll last month.

The documents, including the payroll, are now pending approval from Cebu City mayor Joy Augustus Young, who is acting mayor while Mayor Michael Rama is on vacation.

Sumaylo said, however, that she does not know when the allowances will be given to BPAT members, as the budget is still under process.

She added that former members of the Barangay Intelligence Network (BIN) who did not sign up for BPAT will still receive allowances from the Cebu City government, adding that she doesn't want to "deprive BIN members of their hard-earned money."

BPAT, an organization under the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO), gives its members a monthly allowance of P3,000.

All of its members are assigned to different sectors in Cebu City, assisting CCPO officers in checkpoints, saturation drives, and community services.

Meanwhile, Sumaylo said BPAT members will be providing school supplies to incoming Grade One pupils at Mabolo Elementary School.—  (FREEMAN)