House approves pro-senior citizen bills on 3rd and final reading

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MANILA, Philippines — Four bills seeking to promote the welfare of senior citizens, including a proposal to increase the amount of discounts given to the elderly, have been approved on third and final reading in the House of Representatives.

During the session on Tuesday, the following bills were approved through nominal voting:

• House Bill (HB) No. 10312, or the proposed act enhancing the discount on purchases of goods and services of senior citizens and persons with disability (PWD) (235 votes in the affirmative – zero negative – zero abstentions)
• HB No. 10313, or the proposed promotion of senior citizens and PWDs by including services in the eGOV super app (235-0-0)
• HB No. 10188, or the proposed Senior Citizens Protection Against Fraud Act (232-0-0)
• HB No. 10423, the proposed granting of a universal social pension to senior citizens, amending the Senior Citizen Act

HB No. 10312 proposes that the discount to seniors and PWDs — including the 20 percent discount and exemption from the value-added tax (VAT) on goods and services, or other discounts — will be considered in addition to “any prevailing promotional offers or discounts extended by business establishments.”

This will stop the practice of stores where discounts are no longer offered to seniors or PWDs if the product or service being availed is on promotion.

“In no case shall a promotion or discount offered by a business establishment to the general public be considered in compliance with Section 4 of RA 7432, as amended, and  Section 32 of RA 7277, as amended,” the bill stated.

The House has previously deliberated a proposed P125 per week discount ceiling, which is an increase from the former discount cap of P65 per week.  The said discount was said to be implemented last March, government officials said during a previous meeting with House Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez.

READ: P125 per week discount for seniors’ grocery items takes effect in March 

HB No. 10188, a substitution to HB Nos. 5018 and 7052, will task the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), through local government units and other agencies, to “educate the senior citizens and their families, caregivers” on different issues:

• General information on mail, telemarketing, and internet fraud targeting senior citizens, including descriptions of the most common fraud schemes
• How and where to report fraud, and how to prevent and avoid various forms of fraud targeting senior citizens

The Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT) will be in-charge of providing technical assistance to DILG, the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC), and other government agencies in the creation and development of a “website and an online platform to facilitate coordination and sharing of information.”

“The DICT shall also provide information on internet and telecommunications fraud targeting senior citizens, including information on how to prevent and avoid these types of fraud,” the bill stated.

Universal pension

HB No. 10423 seeks to amend portions of R.A. No. 7432 by editing parts of the social pension for senior citizens, which will now include a “universal social pension” translating into a “non-contributory monthly monetary grant” which shall not be less than P1,000 per month.

Section 5 of R.A. No. 7432 will also be amended to include a monthly stipend of at least P500 for seniors not considered as indigents, provided that after five years of the eventual law’s effectivity, all seniors would get the P1,000 monthly stipend “regardless of any other pension benefits they may receive.”

READ: Gov’t backing urged for elderly social pension bill 

For the promotion of services for seniors, HB No. 10313 places responsibility on DICT regarding the incorporation of “dedicated sections within the eGov PH Super App platform with user-friendly interface” like having adjustable text sizes, voice assistance, and other features so that seniors can use it efficiently.

DICT, if the bill is enacted, will also be asked to link the eGov PH Super App with the National Identification database of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), which means seniors can eventually use the app for digital copies of their senior citizen identification cards.