Strictly for seniors

Over the past few weeks, issues concerning senior citizenship have piled up on my desk. Some cover new developments; others go back to basic problems in the implementation of the benefits provided for by the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010 (Republic Act 9994).

We assure our fellow senior citizens that we have not forgotten and will continue to contribute to raising their voices in promoting the rights and the welfare of our elderly. Some well-meaning friends have even suggested that I join the rat race for public office. I wish to restate what I said in the past: I have no intention of running for any office. I have been there, done that, and now it is time for others to—as they say in baseball—step up to the plate and do their share in the all-important work of nation building.

Let me start with some basic complaints that should be properly addressed to the various offices of senior citizens affairs (OSCA agencies) in Metro Manila.

According to a letter from Wenceslao Vinzons Tan, chair of an organization known as the San Juan Civilian Volunteers, several restaurants in Metro Manila are not giving an accurate 20-percent discount, plus the exemption from the 12-percent value added tax (VAT), to senior patrons. This appears to be the result of an erroneous two-step computation made by pre-programmed cash registers that deny the senior citizen about P2.40 for every P100-purchase. Perhaps it would help if specific restaurants are identified for easier monitoring.

Although strictly speaking, this is not solely a senior citizen complaint. Tan also writes that some establishments refuse to accept credit cards for purchases of less than P300. Secretary Gregory Domingo of the Department of Trade and Industry should look at this situation and possibly formulate some kind of ruling that would be beneficial to the general public.  Some folks don’t usually carry cash and rely on credit cards.

Another issue that has been raised by other senior citizens is whether a duplicate senior citizen ID should be honored by business establishments. At times the ladies, in particular, complain that their original senior citizen ID is in one wallet that they do not always carry with them. A duplicate ID kept in another wallet would be helpful. We all know that at our age we tend to be forgetful and sometimes absent-minded. However, some restaurants refuse to honor duplicates. Offhand, I see no reason why this should not be allowed. We accept photocopies of official government documents without much ado. There should be no problem with duplicate senior citizen IDs.

When I mentioned this problem to Department of Social Welfare and Development personnel, they replied that the matter would be taken up at the next meeting of the National Coordinating and Monitoring Board (NCMB) for evaluation and decision.

In this connection, we wish to thank Social Welfare Secretary Dinky Soliman for her prompt action in referring to the proper agencies some of the issues I had brought to the attention of the NCMB, of which she is the chairperson. The response of GSIS president Robert Vergara and SSS president Emilio de Quiros Jr., particularly on the need to conduct “a regular review of the retirement benefits of senior citizens to ensure responsiveness and sustainability,” provides hope and optimism for our elderly.

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In August last year, the Quezon City Council passed an ordinance granting senior citizens of Quezon City exemption from the payment of parking fees in establishments, malls, hospitals, or other similar places situated within the territorial jurisdiction of the city. The ordinance has been generally accepted and implemented by most business operators, but as always, there are a few that refuse to follow the law.

Two weeks ago, Vere Laxamana of Rolling Hills Subdivision was made to pay parking fees by the Dr. Fe Del Mundo Medical Center Foundation along Banawe Street. When she informed the parking lot attendants of her senior citizen status, they replied that no instructions were received from their superiors on the matter. Calling the attention of FDM Medical Center Foundation.

Another twist in the implementation of this ordinance has to do with parking spaces. Some establishments claim that slots for senior citizens are all occupied. This implies that they had set aside only a limited number of spaces for senior-citizen use. Nowhere in the ordinance is there such a limitation affecting the rights of senior citizens for free parking. Parking must be on a first come, first served basis.

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Last month, several senior citizen golfers including retired Maj. Gen. Leo Alvez, mentioned that the domestic airports in particular, the Naia, should extend the 20-percent senior citizen discount in connection with the terminal fee being collected by our airports for departing passengers. They cited the case of Cebu Airport that for some time now, has been granting senior citizens this discount. While the law says that “fares for domestic air and sea travel including advanced booking shall be subject to the twenty percent discount and VAT exemption,” it is silent on the terminal fee being collected in relation to domestic air travel.

On a visit to the general manager of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), retired Maj. Gen. Jose Angelo Honrado, I brought to his attention this matter concerning the terminal fee.

General Honrado, who apparently was already aware of the problem, presented me with a copy of the Office of Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) Opinion 86, series of 2011, signed by the acting government corporate counsel, Raoul C. Creencia. After a lengthy discussion, the opinion came to the following conclusion: “We opine that the twenty percent discount accorded to senior citizens is not applicable to passenger terminal fees. Stated differently, the passenger terminal fee charged by the MIAA is not within the purview of the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2010.”

The OGCC Opinion strengthens earlier Civil Aeronautics Board guidelines that state, “the twenty percent discount shall only be applied to airfare and shall not be applied to the payment of lawful taxes and other fees and charges imposed in relation to the domestic air travel.”

In view of these rulings, will Cebu Airport now be required to refund to the government the discounts that were granted earlier to their departing passengers? Incidentally, a few weeks ago, Transportation Secretary Mar Roxas announced that effective August this year the terminal fee would be incorporated in the cost of the air ticket. This cuts out one transaction in the number of counter stops made by departing air travelers.