spot_img
27.5 C
Philippines
Friday, March 29, 2024

Census of seniors set

- Advertisement -

Manila Mayor Joseph “Erap” Estrada has ordered a new, thorough documentation of senior citizens in the city to account for hundreds more who are not registered with the city’s Office of the Senior Citizens Affairs.

Estrada said that as of Wednesday, about 142,000 registered senior citizens are already enjoying benefits from the local government such as free hospitalization in the six district hospitals, birthday cash gifts, free movie passes thrice a week, and free maintenance medicines in health centers.

Seniors who have reached 100 years old are also entitled to the P100,000 centenarian cash gift, Estrada  said.

“There are more to come for the benefit of our senior citizens, like one of my plans for this year, to give P5,000 in burial assistance for those who pass away,” Estrada added.

- Advertisement -

The mayor directed incoming OSCA officer-in-charge Efren Manangan to devise a new formula to help senior citizens enjoy the wide range of benefits the city government is offering.

“There really are a lot of seniors out there that need help, so I am asking OSCA personnel to speed up the census for verification in the city’s 896 barangays with the help of our barangay officials, and to account those undocumented senior citizens,” Estrada said.

“For all we know, a lot more senior citizens need our help. Even those homeless elderly I have asked to be accounted for documentation so we can take care of them and help them right away,” he said.

Manila has a lot more plans for its seniors to make their lives easier and happier, the mayor added.

Manangan said they are now verifying the senior citizens in each of the city’s 896 barangays in close coordination with the barangay officials.

Qualified senior citizens will be issued official OSCA and Senior Citizen identification cards they can use in their everyday transactions and in availing the services and programs of the city government, Manangan said.

On the P100,000 cash gift for centenarians, Manangan explained that the program has been authorized by Ordinance No. 8483 approved by Estrada on March 17, 2016.

Under the ordinance authored by then 3rd District Councilor Yul Servo— now the district’s congressman—every living centenarian shall, within 30 days from his or her 100th birthday, receive the cash gift from the city government.

Even centenarians who reached the age of 100 prior to the passage of the ordinance shall also receive the cash gift, as long as they are residents of Manila for at least six months, the OSCA said.

Every centenarian also receives P10,000 each during the yearly celebration of Araw ng Maynila on June 24.

To date, 52 centenarians have benefited from Estrada’s cash incentive program that he started in 2016.

- Advertisement -

LATEST NEWS

Popular Articles