Senator Win Gatchalian is taking a firm stand against funding half-baked programs such as the Ayuda para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP) amid continuing hearings on the government’s proposed budget for 2026.

As chair of the Senate Committee on Finance, Gatchalian vowed to reject any attempt to fund the AKAP program. “We want programs that are well studied, with a feasibility study, so that we know the impact for sure,” he said at a recent hearing on the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) proposed 2026 budget.

He revealed data showing that there were more AKAP beneficiaries in areas with lower poverty incidence, while fewer beneficiaries were recorded in areas with higher poverty incidence. “Ang masaklap, redundant ang programa, nasasayang lang ang pera, at nagiging inefficient pa,” he said, noting that AKAP has goals similar to those of the DSWD’s Assistance to Individuals in Crisis Situations (AICS).

Instead of funding AKAP, Gatchalian said he would rather augment funding for the AICS program, which suffered a Php 17.7 billion budget cut, down 40% from this year’s allocation, under the 2026 National Expenditure Program (NEP).