De Lima thanks Senate for passing measures to improve lives of the poor

Senator Leila M. de Lima yesterday thanked her colleagues in the 24-member Senate for their approval of important social justice measures which seek to improve the lives of the most vulnerable sectors, notably poor families and senior citizens.

De Lima, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Social Justice, Welfare and Rural Development, said she is elated that three of her pet measures were overwhelmingly approved in the Senate ahead of their mid-term May 2019 election recess.

“Recently, three priority legislations were successfully passed in the Senate with the goal of improving the lives of the most vulnerable sectors of our society. Their cries have finally been heard, and they will no longer be consigned in the shadows,” she said.

Last Jan. 29, the Senate passed on third and final reading Senate Bill (SB) 2121, also referred to as the Magna Carta of the Poor, which seeks to guarantee full enjoyment of the basic rights of the poor to food, work, education, shelter and health.

Under SB 2121 which she authored, poor individuals are granted ready access to government services to mitigate the impact of poverty especially during times of calamities or natural disasters.

The Senate also approved SB 2159 creating a national commission that would formulate policies and programs to protect the welfare of senior citizens in compliance with its obligation “to give back to those who served this nation with blood and sweat.”