TACLOBAN CITY—More senior citizens of this city are expected to receive a monthly social pension after the qualifying age was lowered from 77 years old to 60.
City Social Welfare and Development Officer Remedios Buna said the number of elderly who are qualified for the monthly social pension will also increase from the current 1,950 beneficiaries to 4,810. She said the expansion of coverage is due to the increased allocation provided by the Department of Social Welfare and Development under this program.
The social pension for senior citizens is mandated under Republic Act 9994, or the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010. The program provides a monthly pension of P500 for poor seniors to augment their daily subsistence, including their medical needs. It seeks to improve the living condition of eligible indigent-senior citizens and to protect them from neglect and deprivation.
The target beneficiaries are seniors aged 60 years old and older who are frail, sickly or with disability, with no regular income or support from family and relatives, and without pension from private or government institutions.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) is targeting 2.8 million indigent senior citizens as its recipient this year, more than double compared to the total target beneficiaries of the program in 2016, which is more than 1.3 million.
The approved budget allocation for the program’s implementation this year amounts to P17,940,258,000, higher than the P8,711,203,000 allocated last year.
Buna, however, said criteria for choosing the recipients remain the same: Filipino citizens, sickly, disabled, no income or any other means of livelihood, no pension from private and government pension bodies and no regular support from relatives. But many senior citizens are not familiar with this program and have not availed themselves of this, even when it meets all the set qualification.
For Consolacion Monteroso, 77 years old who is taking care of an 11-year-old grandchild who was orphaned by Supertyphoon Yolanda, the money could have been a big help, especially since they only rely on the income of a small store for their daily needs.
“I am not aware of this pension for senior citizens. Nobody in the barangay has ever told us about it,” she said.
Recently, the city government started releasing the stipend of P3,000 for the payout covering the first and second quarters of 2016. The payout is currently being facilitated by the City Treasurer’s Office, while succeeding releases for this year will be coursed through the Veterans Bank, Buna said.
Tacloban City Mayor Cristina Romualdez has ordered CSWDO to include medical and burial assistance to the city’s senior citizens among its available services on top of the monthly pension.
Image credits: Elmer Recuerdo
1 comment
Good day , My hometown in Palompon Leyte. I just concerned regarding the pension of some members of senior citizens in our barangay, Duljugan Palompon,Leyte. The last they recieved the pension ladt December 2017 the amount of PHp 6,000. each person. Now December 2019 they still waiting the pensions. In our barangay I’ve heard just one person has recieved the pension this Year 2019. Kindly take an action. Where’s the budget for the senior citizens members?
Best regards