7K senior citizens in Cebu City to finally receive cash aid

Local

NO more waiting.

After months of uncertainty, 7,780 senior citizens in Cebu City will finally receive their long-delayed financial assistance from the local government on October 25, Mayor Nestor Archival announced.

In a post on his official Facebook page on Friday, Oct. 17, Archival assured qualified senior citizens that the city government is fulfilling its commitment to them after a five-month delay.

“For months, 7,780 senior citizens have been waiting since May 2024. These are our registered and qualified beneficiaries since 2013, who should have long received their well-deserved assistance. But that wait is finally over,” Archival wrote.

“This October 25, our beloved lolos and lolas will finally receive what’s due to them. No more waiting for one year. No more uncertainty,” he added.

Alongside the announcement, Archival also issued a new Executive Order (EO) titled “An Order Establishing Latest Guidelines on the Distribution of the Senior Citizen’s Financial Assistance.”

The order reaffirms the city’s policy to ensure a “clear, efficient, transparent, and regular mechanism” for distributing financial aid to qualified senior citizens, in line with City Ordinance No. 2453, which grants P12,000 annual assistance to every qualified elderly resident.

“There is a need to establish a clear, efficient, transparent, and regular mechanism for the monthly release and distribution of these funds to ensure beneficiaries receive timely support,” the EO states.

Archival emphasized that the measure aims to streamline disbursement and prevent the kind of delays that affected thousands of senior citizens earlier this year.

The long-awaited payout comes shortly after the Cebu City Council approved Supplemental Budget No. 2 (SB2), amounting to P81.3 million, to cover the surge in aid beneficiaries, repair rain-damaged roads, and support new livelihood programs.

Of the total budget, P40.8 million was earmarked for the Senior Citizens’ Financial Assistance Program, ensuring the city can pay all qualified recipients, including those who have been waiting since May.

Councilor Dave Tumulak, chair of the Committee on Budget and Finance, said the additional allocation was necessary because the previous budget could no longer support the growing number of beneficiaries.

“We discovered that our current budget for senior citizens was no longer enough because of the increase in beneficiaries this year. That’s why we needed to add another P40 million,” Tumulak explained.

The supplemental budget was funded from P489 million in city savings from the third quarter, achieved through tighter spending and cuts to “unnecessary” programs, including foreign travel.

The City Treasurer’s Office recently completed the third-quarter payout, distributing P3,000 each to qualified seniors, equivalent to P1,000 per month from July to September.

The final claiming date for those who missed the barangay schedule was October 9, held at the Cash Disbursement Division in City Hall.

After the senior payout, the city also began distributing aid to Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) starting Oct. 10.(TGP)