MANILA, Philippines — The Senate on Monday passed on third and final reading the Senate Bill No. 2506, which aims to increase the monthly social pension for indigent senior citizens to P1,000.
Under the law, indigent seniors should receive not less than a P1,000 monthly social pension from the current P500 monthly pension allowance. This got 18-0-0 approval from the Senate.
“The pandemic highlighted the need to increase the monthly stipend of indigent senior citizens. Five hundred pesos is really very small especially if we take into account the increase of prices over the past decade.”
Senator Joel Villanueva, chairman of the Senate subcommittee under the Committee on Social Justice, Welfare, and Rural Development
Villanueva also cited in his previous statement that the measure will also provide options other than cash payout for the pension, the transaction fee of which will not be charged to the beneficiary.
The bill likewise transfers the distribution of the pension allowance from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to the National Commission of Senior Citizens.
“Maganda na ang mangangasiwa sa pondo para sa mga indigent senior citizen ay mismong mga senior citizen din,” Villanueva said.
(It is better if the people who would facilitate the pension funds for our indigent senior citizens are also senior citizens.)