Attention all senior citizens (This article is for you)
I wrote this article because one time I was so disheartened with what happened to the father of my good friend who is already 61 years old, a senior citizen as defined by our laws.
Let me tell you the story.
I accompanied Tito Boy to a pharmacy because his daughter is working in Manila. And because of poor health, he cannot just go by himself to a pharmacy and buy his medicines. What struck me was the kind of attention the sales lady gave this poor man. She obviously did not notice that I was with this senior citizen and so she seem not to attend to him. Obviously also, I got pissed off by her inefficiency so I told her that we've been waiting for a long time already and that I am with a senior citizen who needs his medicine.
She attended to us and asked for the senior citizen's ID of the customer. It turned out that the Tito Boy has not brought with him his senior citizen's ID. But that he has brought with him other valid ID's. He was told to just return with his Senior Citizen's ID instead.
This is one of the many flaws of different business establishments. They have not even read and understood this law which has already been amended in order to cater more to the needs of our elderly which is expressly mandated in our Constitution.
We now have Republic Act 9257 which is AN ACT GRANTING ADDITIONAL BENEFITS AND PRIVILEGES TO SENIOR CITIZENS AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7432, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS "AN ACT TO MAXIMIZE THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENIOR CITIZENS TO NATION BUILDING, GRANT BENEFITS AND SPECIAL PRIVILEGES AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES".
Section 4 of R.A. 9257 provides that in the availment of the privileges mentioned above, the senior citizen or elderly person may submit as proof of his/her entitlement thereto any of the following:
(a) an ID issued by the city or municipal mayor or of the barangay captain of the place where the senior citizen or the elderly resides;
(b) the passport of the elderly person or senior citizen concerned; and
(c) other documents that establish that the senior citizen or elderly person is a citizen of the Republic and is at least sixty (60) years of age.
There is just no room for any interpretation. The provision of the law is so clear. It is thus, acceptable to present any proof to establish that indeed this person is a senior citizen through any of these three documents.
I would like to emphasize this provision because I think most of the senior citizens have the same predicament as Tito Boy.
Anyway, the bottomline of my story is that, Tito Boy was able to purchase his medicines after I told the sales lady this provision of the law.
I sincerely hope this will not happen again to any senior citizens who more than anyone else need to be taken cared of and attended.
It is supposed to be their privilege, not something they have to beg for every time. After all, we all have an elderly in the family. And sooner or later, we will also reach that age where we will avail of these privileges.
We would all want to be taken cared of and attended to, right?
That is the real truth.