Metro Manila, Philippines – The government lacks funds to provide ₱1,000 monthly pensions for senior citizens, resulting in a growing debt affecting over 600,000 elderly individuals to date, the Senate learned during a budget deliberation late Tuesday, Nov. 19.
“Yes totoo iyan at aminin natin malaki ang utang natin sa ating mga señoritos at señoritas. In 2023, 490,000 ang waitlisted seniors, hindi sila nabayaran pagkat kinulang ng pera. Pinagpilitan natin nung 2024. Pero lumobo pa rin yung seniors kaya’t ito nga 622 baka umabot pa ng 800,00 ang waitlisted seniors,” Senator Imee Marcos said while tackling the proposed 2025 budget of the Department of Social Welfare and Development.
[Translation: Yes, that’s true, and let’s admit it—we have a significant debt to our senior citizens. In 2023, 490,000 seniors were waitlisted and left unpaid due to lack of funds. We tried to address this in 2024, but the number of seniors continued to grow. Now, the waitlisted seniors have reached 622,000, and it could rise to 800,000.]
Marcos spoke on behalf of the DSWD as chairperson of the finance subcommittee overseeing the agency’s budget.
She responded to Senator Loren Legarda, who relayed complaints from senior citizens who failed to receive pension. Legarda further asked if the General Appropriations Bill allocates funds to pay off the 600,000 waitlisted senior citizens.
“Wala pa rin pondo doon sa waitlisted (There is still no funding for the waitlisted),” Marcos said.
“Ilang buwan ang kakulangan sa pagbayad ng social pension (How many months were the delays in paying the social pension)?” Legarda asked, noting that some of the complainants have been waiting for their subsidies for six months.
Marcos said the 600,000 waitlisted senior citizens have never received their pensions since turning 60, as they are not in the list of beneficiaries yet.
“Tuluy-tuloy ang bayad kung nasa listahan ka na. Ang problema lumulubo nga ang numbero at hindi kinakaya ng ating budget (Payments continue as long as you are on the list. The problem is, the numbers keep growing, and our budget can’t keep up),” Marcos said.
The National Expenditure Program recommended by Malacañang allocates ₱49.8 billion for the pensions of indigent senior citizens, but the Senate committee on finance was only able to raise it slightly to ₱49.81 billion, Marcos said. ###
