Golden opportunities
Take a look at the ‘silver-haired market’ as the country celebrates Elderly Filipino Week by early October
ROMAN is a recent airline-executive retiree. He is spending his hard miles traveling. He has been visiting tourist destinations in Asia as well as checking out the best places in Central America.
Pacita retired five years ago as a university professor following the death of her husband. She is spending her pension and the pension of her husband, which she inherited, donating money to a charitable foundation, where she is an officer. She sometimes treats her friends to lunch or dinner. She shares some amount for the tuition fees of her grandchildren. And she also travels.
Hector and Chona, on the other hand, met in a government agency. In addition to their government- service insurance, they bought a life insurance from a private company. But the company went bankrupt. So now, their only passive income is their pensions from the Government Service Insurance System ( GSIS) and the cash sent by their two children working in the Middle East— one as a restaurant chef, another as a homecare nurse.
The couple just has enough money for their daily meals, medicines, groceries, and basic needs. They are very happy for the senior citizen privileges law, which enables them to watch movies for free, enjoy discounts in restaurants where they have dinner after the movies, so they don’t have to cook anymore when they go home. They also set aside 10 percent of their monthly “income” for their tithes, which they put into the love- offering basket during their faith community’s prayer meeting every Sunday.
Big business
Roman, Pacita, and the couple Hector and Chona ( not their real names) are living testaments that the so- called “silver- haired market” is, indeed, big business, presenting golden opportunities to many entrepreneurs and specialized services. Gone are the days when the oldies were perceived as no longer goodies. They got sick and in the hospital, they were like the dreams brought to the doorstep of the legendary Mona Lisa— as the song goes: They just lie there and they die there.
But thanks to medical advances and fitness programs, seniors are still so healthy that nowadays, the age 70— or even 80— is the new 50 and much more! Thanks to social security programs— not to mention having children working overseas— seniors have ample disposable, if not discretionary, income. Statistics show that the number of people aged 50 years old is fast increasing. The 2010 census shows that the Philippines has about 7 million people aged 60 and over; by 2050, the number will balloon to an estimated 1.2 billion. Just imagine what it will amount to if each senior spends even only P500 a day. Do your math.
Who they are
According to law, a senior citizen or elderly refers to any resident citizen of the Philippines of at least 60 years old. Senior citizens with dual citizenship may also qualify provided they prove their Filipino citizenship and have at least six months residency in the Philippines. These seniors, in other words, have the mighty dollars to spend. To avail themselves of the benefits and privileges, seniors must apply for a seniorcitizen card. Here’s how to go about it:
Step : Go to your municipality’s Office of Senior Citizens’ Affair ( OSCA), where you will be asked to fill out a form, which you may also download from the internet.
Step 2: Present documents proving you are 60 years old— recent 1x1 ID photo and a photocopy of any of the following: voter’s ID, driver’s license, NBI clearance, police clearance, old residence certificate, postal ID.
Where they are
Shining, shimmering silver
hairs are all over the place— restaurants, cinemas, tourist destinations, schools, and universities, among other places. This is because the constitution provides that it is the duty of the state to recognize the rights of senior citizens and support them through various social systems. There are three major laws providing benefits and privileges to seniors: Republic Act 7432, otherwise known as the Expanded Senior Citizens Act of 2003; Republic Act 9994, which is an amendment to RA 7432; and RA 10645, which amends RA 9994, providing mandatory PhilHealth, or the Philippine Health Insurance Corp., coverage for senior citizens. fees, homecare services of licensed health workers; plus, free vaccinations.
• Mandatory PhilHealth coverage
• 20- percent discount on air and sea transportation, railway transits, buses, jeepneys, taxi, and shuttle services
• 20- percent discount on restaurants, hotels, theaters, cinemas, concerts, recreation centers
• 20- percent discount on funeral and burial services, including casket, embalming, cremation
• Exemption from the value- added tax on applicable goods and services for their ex- clusive use— applies to both cash and credit card payments
• 5- percent discount on utilities— water and electricity— provided the meter is registered under the name of the senior and consumption does not exceed 100 kilowatt-hour and 30 cubic meters, respectively
• Income- tax exemption minimum wage earners Exemption from training fees for socioeconomic programs of private • for