By Wenna Berondo-Bendol

“Salamat sa Guinoo, gintagaan nya ko grasya (Thank you God for giving me grace)!” Pacencia Gravino blurted as she raises her trembling arms while looking up as a sign of gratefulness for the blessing she received.

The postman has just handed her P1,500 cash as her quarterly stipend from the government.

“Makabakal naman ko sang akon gatas, Milo kag pagkaon (I can buy again my milk, Milo and food),” she said.

Gravino, 93, of Barangay Tap-oc, Molo, Iloilo City, is one of the beneficiaries of the Social Pension program of the Department of Social Welfare and Development who received their stipend via door-to-door payment.

Aside from having money to buy her food, she is very thankful because she no longer needs to go to the barangay gym and bear long queues and the crowd just to be able to claim her pension.

“Sa edad ko nga ini, luya na tuhod ko magkadto sa gym. Gakurog-kurog na kamot ko magpirma. Pero pasalamat ko sa Guinoo nga buhi pa ko kag ginatagaan nya ko grasya (In my age, my knees are already weak to go to the gym. My hand is trembling when I sign. But I thank God I am still alive and He is giving me blessings),” she said.

Like Gravino, 80-yer-old Felicitas Beltran of Barangay Kasing-Kasing, Molo, Iloilo City also considered the pension as blessing.

“Nagapasalamat gid ako sa Guinoo kay subong pa lang ko nakabaton pension nga 80 anyos na ako (I am very thankful to God because I am now receiving pension),” she said, adding that right after the postman handed over to her the money she immediately instructed her daughter to buy medicines for her cough, milk and food.

Both the household where the two social pensioners are living are also beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program, which is also being implemented by the DSWD.

In the aim to improve and efficiently implement the program, the Department pilot tested the door-to-door payment of social pension using the services of the Philippine Postal Corporation (Philpost) in Iloilo City and the municipalities of Anilao, Calinog and Pavia in Iloilo.

Judith Marte, focal person of the Social Pension program said the scheme may be implemented in the whole region once proven that it is effective and more beneficial to the indigent senior citizens.

Data from the Philpost show that out of the total 787 beneficiaries in the four areas, 724 were able to receive their grants of P1,500 each representing their stipend for the second quarter. A total of P1,086,000 cash was delivered to the beneficiaries. Of the 63 who did not receive their pension, 51 were deceased and 12 transferred residence to another place.

The provision of Social Pension for indigent senior citizens is mandated by law stated in Section 5 of the Republic Act 9994, otherwise known as the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010. It is an additional government assistance in the amount of P500 monthly stipend to augment the daily subsistence and other medical needs of elderly persons./DSWD6