The Philippine National Police (PNP) and the National Police Commission (Napolcom) doled out educational assistance to the beneficiaries of the 44 slain Special Action Force members, or SAF 44, earlier in August.

The Educational Assistance Certificates handed out to a total of 46 children will cover expenses until the recipients finish college.

As part of the recent amendments of the Napolcom to its educational assistance program, the amounts that the SAF 44 beneficiaries will receive per academic year will now be increased to Php 10,000 for kindergarten, Php 18,000 for elementary students, and Php 24,000 for high school students.

Additionally, the assistance that will be given to vocational course takers and college students will be increased to Php 18,000 and Php 30,000, respectively.

The Napolcom has also integrated the K-12 program and Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) short courses into its educational assistance scheme.

Meanwhile, out of the 89 requests from other beneficiaries, which includes the SAF 44 members’ siblings, nieces and nephews, 43 were already granted with Presidential Social Fund scholarship programs and 17 with Commission on Higher Education (CHED) assistance projects.

As of July 24, the families and relatives of the SAF 44 have received lump sum benefits worth Php 69,556,524.88, pension benefits worth Php 1,016,995.70 and donations worth Php 35,367,333.00.

Some local government units, and private citizens and organizations have also directly extended financial assistance to the SAF 44 families.