ROXAS City – A total of 3,313 indigent senior citizens in this city have received their social pension in the last quarter of 2024, or from October to December.
The payout, held on Monday afternoon, October 28, was led by the personnel of the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Mayor Ronnie Dadivas. The DSWD had disbursed a total of P9,939,000.
“Gintinguhaan naton nga mas temprano nila nga mabaton agud magamit nila sa mga importante nila nga kinahanglan kag makapamag-an sang ila panumdumon,” Dadivas said.
Lola Lydia, one of the beneficiaries, expressed her gratitude to the Social Pension Program.
“May pambakal na ako sang maintenance [medicines] kag gatas. Wala na gid ako kwarta pambakal bulong, nahuya man ako magpinangayo sa akon bata kay kinahanglan man sang iya pamilya. Mayad lang ari na ang akon pensyon,” she said.
The DSWD’s Social Pension Program is in line with the fulfillment of the obligation of the government to protect the most vulnerable sector through social protection and for the implementation of the Republic Act (RA) No. 9994.
The program provides stipend of P1,000 per month to indigent senior citizens aged 60 years old and above.
Under RA 9994, senior citizens who are qualified to receive social pension are those who are frail, sickly or with disability, without pension or permanent source of income, has no compensation or financial assistance from his or her relative to support his or her basic needs./PN