Nais ni House Speaker Martin Romualdez na taasan ang ibinibigay na diskwento sa mga senior citizen at persons with disability (PWDs) para sa kanilang grocery at food supplement.
Aniya, sa kasalukuyan may 5% na diskwento kada linggo sa grocery ang mga senior at PWD na may cap o limit na P1,500 o katumbas n P65 kada linggo lang—halaga na sa ngayon ay masyado na aniyang maliit.
Nakatakdang pulungin ni Romualdez ang binuong technical working group ngayong linggo para repasuhin ang Senior Citizen’s Act, at tukuyin kung magkano ang maaaring diskwentong maidagdag.
“This amount is no longer appropriate in the current economic climate, given the high cost of living,” ani Romualdez.
Sinegundahan naman ito ni United Senior Citizen Party-list Representative Milagros Magsaysay.
“Increasing the value of the grocery budget for seniors or PWDs to, say, P5,000 a week, would mean the mandated 5% discount would equate to P250,” paliwanag ni Magsaysay.
Nais din ng House leader na isama sa diskwento ang mga food supplement at bitamina para sa mga senior at PWD, na palagi din nilang binibili para matiyak ang malusog na pangangatawan.
“Many of our seniors and PWDs need to regularly purchase supplements or vitamins to maintain their health and strengthen their resistance to diseases, so it’s only fitting to include these in the discounted items as well,” sabi pa ni Speaker Romualdez. | ulat ni Kathleen Forbes
