The Borongan City government is doubling the monthly financial assistance of PHP500 for senior citizens starting in 2025, implementing a local ordinance approved last year.

Authored by City Councilor Lyra Gel Agda Limbauan, the ordinance revised Section 4 of City Ordinance No. 210 passed in 2012 that grants a monthly monetary allowance to eligible elderlies in the city.

Some 5,800 elderly residents will benefit from the adjustment.

“This increase in the monthly monetary allowance for our senior citizens has been approved through our continued efforts to promote their welfare. It is my way of fulfilling my promise to provide consistent support to our elders in the city,” Limbauan said in an online interview Monday.

She thanked the members of the city council, headed by Mayor Jose Ivan Dayan Agda and Vice Mayor Emmanuel Tiusonco, for their support in the creation of the ordinance and implementing the program.

The author cited inflation as one of the major factors in the consideration to raise the monthly allowance of the elderly to PHP1,000.

“Many are no longer employed and rely solely on government-provided monetary allowances to sustain their daily needs. Therefore, it is essential to periodically adjust the allowance for senior citizens to help maintain their quality of life amid rising costs,” the ordinance stated.

Distribution of the monetary assistance is done in each village by the city social welfare and development office every six months.

Aside from the monthly allowance, eligible senior citizens of Borongan are also recipients of free medicines, support for agriculture-related livelihoods and free bus rides. (PNA)