MANILA – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has suspended the operations of a facility in San Pedro, Laguna, run by vlogger Benjie Perillo, known as Bench TV, citing multiple safety and compliance issues affecting residents, including minors and persons with disabilities.

The shelter was found to be operating without a valid Certificate of Registration and License to Operate (CRLTO) from the DSWD Standards Bureau (SB). “Ang question is saan ba sya hindi nag-comply (what are his shortcomings)? Kasi (Because), we have standards and we have the findings. With regard to the first finding or requirement – legal authority – yung requirement natin sa DSWD ay dapat may (our requirement in DSWD is there must be a) Certificate of Registration and License to Operate (CRLTO). Based on our database ay walang (there is no) CRLTO from DSWD,” SB Director Megan Therese Manahan said during a media forum Thursday.

Manahan said the facility also lacks professional staff, including registered social workers and a multidisciplinary team, necessary to manage cases and provide interventions for residents. “Next requirement – professional staffing – as I have mentioned earlier, there are minors, persons with special needs, some are even mentally challenged and hindi maka-communicate (can’t communicate) with regard to consent or their needs. The standard is there must be registered social workers for case management and multidisciplinary team for the appropriate intervention. When we went there, there are none. That’s very important because social workers have case folders, medical records, but we didn’t even see any documentation,” she added.

Other violations include the lack of safety certifications such as fire safety inspection certificates, sanitary permits, and occupancy or building inspection approvals, which are required for social welfare and development agencies operating 24/7. The DSWD also flagged breaches in privacy and child protection, noting that clients’ faces were visible on social media without consent.

“In this case, there is no institutional oversight and the operations were done at the discretion of the owner,” Manahan said, adding that the department had already conducted a site visit in 2022 and provided technical assistance, but the shelter has yet to secure the required certification.

The DSWD is scheduled to meet Perillo and his team on Friday to guide them through the licensing process and provide technical assistance on beneficiary- and child-protection policies. “We will orient him with the requirements to get a license from DSWD. I had social workers go there and provide very specific technical assistance on how to do the beneficiary-protection policy and the child-protection policy,” Manahan said.