• THERESA MAE DULMAN
More than 5,000 senior citizens 65 years old and above in Bacolod have been added to the city government’s masterlist of beneficiaries of the 10-kilo rice assistance under the Bawat Bayan Makikinabang (BBM) program of the national government.
Bacolod Mayor Greg Gasataya said they received complaints from elderly residents, whose names were missing from the initial list of beneficiaries.
Through verification by the city government, it was confirmed that these seniors do not receive any social pension, making them fully eligible to benefit from the rice distribution initiative, he said.
Gasataya noted it remains unclear why their names were excluded from the city’s initial database, but assured the public that the city took immediate steps to validate their status.
The newly-included senior citizens are set to receive their first tranche of 10-kilos of rice each.
The city government is scheduled to continue the rollout of the second tranche of rice aid this week.
In total, eligible beneficiaries will receive rice in four tranches, or 40 kilograms per recipient until November. | TMD
