The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Rose de la Cruz
Only meats, fish, veggies, bread and milk are covered by discounts for senior citizens in groceries. And at P65 a week for grocery items (with a price cap of only P1,500 per grocery visit), this is actually pittance by any standard. Yet, this P65 a week discount on groceries must be accompanied by a booklet, lacking which no discount would be extended.
Considering that most senior citizens, during their prime have contributed much in taxes and productive endeavors that benefited society, then they must be generously rewarded for such contributions but as it is they only get 20 percent in transport fares, groceries at P65 per grocery visit, not all restaurants and fastfood chains give them discounts (as the case with Starbucks, which the latter relented and is now making up with a 40% discount for purchases of SCs) and medicine discounts can only be availed of with proper updated prescription by the doctor and a free movie pass only once a week (except for Makati which generously gives them free movies at first screening).
Leaders of the House of Representatives on February 7 said they want to raise the P65 weekly limit on SC discounts on groceries and food supplements and for those with disabilities.
Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez no less called this current discount “meager” as he asserted increases in such benefits, by convening a Technical Working Group to assess the SC Act and recommend additional discounts for seniors and PWDs.
Romualdez said at P65 per week discount on groceries, this translates to only 5% when the law Senior Citizens Act calls for 30 percent.
Rep. Milagros Magsaysay of United Senior Citizens partylist suggested that raising the weekly grocery budget for seniors or PWDs to P5,000 to translate to a P250 discount with the mandated 5 percent discount.
Romualdez insists that discounts should not be restricted to groceries but should also extend to food supplements and vitamins for the elderly and PWDs. He asked the House Ways and Means Committee chaired by Albay Rep. Joey Sarte Salceda to confirm that his proposals are included in the TWG’s agenda in the coming days, Business Mirror reported.