Archival vetoes measure restoring quarterly cash aid for seniors

Local

A PROGRAM meant to ease financial aid for Cebu City’s seniors has sparked a fierce policy showdown at City Hall.

This after Mayor Nestor Archival rejected a key provision of an ordinance restoring quarterly payouts for senior citizens.

In a veto message dated March 23, 2026, Archival returned City Ordinance No. 2809 without his signature, objecting specifically to Paragraph 3, which allows immediate family members to claim financial assistance on behalf of qualified seniors who are unable to do so.

The measure, approved earlier by the Cebu City Council, formalizes the release of the P12,000 annual assistance in quarterly tranches of P3,000, while also updating guidelines on distribution and claims.

But for Archival, the issue lies not in the payout schedule, but in how the aid is claimed.

“While I share the Council’s desire to assist our elderly, my primary duty is to ensure that every peso of the City’s Social Amelioration Fund reaches its intended, living, and qualified beneficiaries,” Archival said in his letter.

He warned that allowing proxy claims based on documentation, particularly for seniors who are bedridden, incapacitated, or living outside Cebu City, could open what he described as a “significant loophole.”

At the center of his concern is the removal of strict personal-claim requirements, which the mayor said serve as the city’s most reliable way of confirming a beneficiary’s status.

Through direct interaction, the city is able to verify not only eligibility but also the welfare of senior citizens, something Archival said cannot be replaced by paperwork alone.

Archival underscored the limits of document-based validation, especially for beneficiaries residing outside the city, where local authorities have no capacity to conduct physical checks.

Without on-the-ground verification, he said, the system becomes vulnerable to misuse and unauthorized claims.

“Relying solely on external paperwork, which can be challenging to verify, compromises our commitment to providing secure and direct care to our elderly,” he said.

The mayor also framed his veto within a broader push to align city programs with national health policies, including the Universal Health Care (UHC) Act.

He said seniors should be directed toward existing healthcare systems, such as services offered by the Cebu City Medical Center and the City Health Office, which are designed to provide medical and allied support.

In this setup, financial assistance remains focused on social support, while healthcare needs are addressed through established public health channels.

Rather than discarding the ordinance entirely, Archival called on the City Council to revisit the questioned provision and incorporate stricter safeguards.

He proposed a system anchored on direct validation and localized service delivery, including house-to-house distribution for bedridden seniors within Cebu City.

He also recommended placing unverifiable beneficiaries under a temporary “holding status,” preserving their entitlement until they can be physically validated.

To ensure continued coverage, he suggested an automatic replacement mechanism, where vacated slots are immediately filled by qualified seniors on a waitlist, guided by a priority system based on age and vulnerability.

The ordinance, authored by Councilor Pastor Alcover Jr. and approved without opposition, was intended to clarify long-standing practices in the city’s senior assistance program, particularly the quarterly payout scheme.

It also laid out detailed procedures for claiming assistance, including provisions for unclaimed funds and benefits due to deceased beneficiaries.

With the mayor’s veto, the measure is now back with the Sangguniang Panlungsod, which must decide whether to amend the provision in line with Archival’s recommendations or seek to override the veto.

The outcome will determine how Cebu City balances easier access to benefits for its growing senior population with tighter controls to safeguard public funds.(TGP)