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Social pension for elderly passed on first reading

Councilor Celia Flor, author of the ordinance establishing a social pension fund for qualified senior citizens in Bacolod City.*SP photo

Bacolod City Councilor Celia Flor is proposing a social pension subsidy for senior citizens to augment their daily subsistence and medical needs.

The proposed ordinance establishing a social pension fund for qualified senior citizens in the city of Bacolod and appropriating funds for it was passed on  first reading during the Sangguniang Panlungsod session Wednesday, August 17, with Flor as the main proponent of the measure.

It was referred to the SP Committee on Social Services and Development.

Flor said that the proposed measure will need  P100 million  for its implementation, adding that a public hearing on the proposal will be held on Friday, August 19.

She said that they are still in the process of validating the list of over 60,000 elderly persons in the city.

They are also determining  how much social pension will be given to senior citizens.

Under the proposal, those eligible to receive financial assistance from the social pension fund include indigent senior citizens who do not receive any form of contributory pension, as well as individuals receiving not more than P5,000 monthly from a contributory pension such as the Government Service Insurance System, Philippine Veterans Affairs Office, Social Security System and the social pension program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development, and those who have no permanent source of income, compensation, or financial assistance from relatives to support their  basic needs.

They must be a registered voter and a resident of Bacolod City for at least one year.

Flor expressed optimism on the passage of the ordinance, as it is one of the campaign promises of Mayor Alfredo Benitez.*

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