PB asks LGUs to give gifts to senior citizens

CEBU, Philippines - The Cebu Provincial Board yesterday asked local government units to provide funds to purchase Christmas gifts for indigent senior citizens.

Board Member Sergio Restauro, who sponsored a resolution for such purpose, said the Christmas gifts will somehow make senior citizens realize that they still have a place in the community and that the government still continues to care for them.

“A little and simple gift coming from the government signifies a gesture of its responsibility, love and appreciation to our elders who are already traversing in the so-called ‘twilight years’ of their individual lives,” Restauro said.

He cited the government’s thrust to promote the wellbeing and uplift the lives of every elderly member in the country.

Restauro also said Republic Act 9994, also known as the “Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010,” provides benefits of senior citizens.

“Indigent senior citizens shall be entitled to a monthly stipend amounting to five hundred pesos (P500) to augment the daily subsistence and other medical needs of senior citizens, subject to a review every two years by Congress, in consultation with the DSWD,” the law states.

But Restauro said that the social pension has yet to be received by many qualified recipients.The PB also passed a resolution, also sponsored by Restauro in his capacity as chairman of the committee on health, warning the public to be more cautious in using firecrackers to avoid accidents.

The resolution is in support of the recently launched “Aksiyon: Paputok Injury Reduction (APIR) program of the Department of Health.  (FREEMAN)