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Helen Flores - The Philippine Star
February 27, 2025 | 12:00am
President Marcos leads the inaugural distribution of cash gifts to elderly Filipinos under the Expanded Centenarians Act of 2024, at Malacañang on February 26, 2025.
Noel Pabalate
MANILA, Philippines — President Marcos led yesterday the inaugural payout of P10,000 cash gift to qualified senior citizen beneficiaries under the Expanded Centenarians Act of 2024.
“They (senior citizens) deserve nothing but our love, our care, and our protection,” Marcos said during a ceremony at Malacañang.
“In the New Philippines (Bagong Pilipinas), we want our elders to live with comfort and dignity,” he said.
The President distributed cash gifts to select senior citizens identified by the National Commission of Senior Citizens (NCSC). Similar cash gift distributions were simultaneously held in different parts of the country, benefiting 1,079 elderly.
Marcos has directed the NCSC to ensure that only qualified individuals benefit from the financial incentives. The NCSC aims to complete the distribution of cash gifts to 7,759 identified beneficiaries by the end of this month.
The agency added that P2.9 billion in financial aid would be distributed to 275,000 senior citizens across the country this year. In his speech, Marcos cited some centenarians who are survivors of World War II.
He said about 73 percent of senior citizens depend on family support, while 55 percent use their own money for health expenses.
On Feb. 26 last year, Marcos signed Republic Act 11982, or the Expanded Centenarians Act of 2024, expanding the benefits, formerly limited to centenarians.
RA 11982 grants senior citizens who reach 80, 85, 90 and 95 years old P10,000 cash gift.
Under the law, the government’s benefit for the centenarians is P100,000.
Senior citizens are also entitled to five to 20 percent discounts on products or services under RA 11982. These include a five-percent discount on water and electricity, applicable when water usage does not exceed 30 cubic meters, and electricity consumption is limited to 100 kilowatt-hours.
