MANILA, Philippines — A lawmaker named Rodolfo Ordanes, who cares a lot about senior citizens, is asking the government to give more money to retired Filipinos who get their monthly pensions from the Social Security System (SSS).
👵👴 What’s a Pension?
A pension is money that the government or a company gives every month to people who used to work but are now too old to work. It’s like a small thank-you payment to help them live, buy food, and pay for medicine after retirement.
📢 Why Does Congressman Ordanes Want More Pension?
Back in 2018, there was a law called the Social Security Act. Because of that law, the monthly SSS pension went up by ₱1,000.
But now, Congressman Ordanes says that ₱1,000 is no longer enough.
Why?
Because prices have gone up — food, medicine, and other basic things are more expensive now than they were in 2019.
🛒 Peso Power is Weaker Now
Ordanes explained that “purchasing power” — or what your money can buy — has gone down. This means ₱1,000 today can’t buy as much as it could years ago.
So he’s asking the government to add another ₱1,000 more each month to help senior citizens.
📊 How Much Would That Cost?
Giving this extra ₱1,000 to every pensioner would cost around ₱43.2 billion each year.
But Congressman Ordanes said that’s not too big when you compare it to the total national budget, which is over ₱6 trillion pesos!
“It’s just a small piece of the budget,” he said.
🤝 Who Needs to Approve This?
Congressman Ordanes is asking help from:
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The Department of Finance
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The Department of Budget and Management (DBM)
He wants them to give money directly to SSS so that they can start giving out the extra ₱1,000 to all retirees.
👵👴 Over 3.6 Million Seniors Are Waiting
That’s how many SSS pensioners are hoping for this increase. Most of them need more money just to survive each month, especially now that everything is more expensive.
💭 What This Means for You
If you have a lolo or lola, or know someone who is retired and gets money from the SSS, this plan could really help them buy more food, pay for medicine, or cover other important things.
