SAN JOSE, Antique – A 100-year-old resident of Barangay San Pedro here received a P100,000 incentive from the national government.
Dionela A. Gonzaga also got a letter of felicitation from President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday, Sept. 27.
The incentives for centenarians like Gonzaga – whether residing in the Philippines or abroad – is mandated by Republic Act 10868 (Centenarians Act of 2016).
The cash incentive and letter were turned over to Gonzaga by Mayor Elmer Untaran and the staff of the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office.
Despite the global increase in the population of centenarians, in the Philippines living to a hundred years is a rarity in this day considering the modern lifestyle and ways of many Filipinos.
Given this, Filipino senior citizens who have lived to a hundred years and over should be respected, and they should be accorded with assistance that the government could provide, according to the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
The Centenarians Act of 2016 also set a “National Respect for Centenarians Day”.
As part of the annual Elderly Filipino Week (Oct. 1 to 7), the first Sunday of October has been declared as National Respect for Centenarians Day during which, all Filipinos who have turned centenarian in the current fiscal year shall be awarded a plaque of recognition and a cash incentive by their respective city or municipal governments in appropriate ceremonies. The local government unit concerned shall determine the amount of the cash incentive./PN
