Antique: The government's Lifeline Rate has benefited 7,144 household beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) in Antique. 'We are also still processing and will be submitting the applications of the other 4Ps beneficiaries to Anteco (Antique Electric Cooperative) and Akelco (Aklan Electric Cooperative),' said Pantawid Antique Provincial Office Project Development Officer II Ashlyn Grace Eucogo in an interview on Monday.

According to Philippines News Agency, the province has 22,542 active 4Ps household beneficiaries. Eucogo encouraged other 4Ps household beneficiaries who have not applied for the Lifeline Rate Program (LRP) to approach Pantawid personnel in their municipalities and submit their Barangay Certification, application forms, and current electricity bill for processing either with the Anteco or the Akelco. She emphasized that expanding the program to enable more household beneficiaries will assist the poorest of the poor in Antique.

Jeneme Dubria, whose family is a 4Ps household beneficiary, stated that being included in the LRP has helped them save money to buy food. 'We could save our money for our food because of the LRP,' she said, adding that she still has two children in Grades 8 and 10 who are in school and being monitored by the Pantawid workers. Marge Mijares expressed her satisfaction, noting that the LRP allows her household to allocate money for other needs instead of solely for electricity bills.

In an earlier interview, Antique Electric Cooperative General Manager Neal Peter Ve±egas mentioned that the LRP is mandated by Republic Act 11552, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. He explained that Anteco offers a seven percent discount to 4Ps households consuming 15 kilowatt hours (kWh) or less per month, while those consuming 16 kWh to 20 kWh receive a 5 percent discount. President Ferdinand R. Marcos, in his State of the Nation Address on Monday, announced the expansion of the Lifeline Rate.