Cebu City Council approves monthly distribution of PWDs’ aid

CEBU, Philippines — Persons with disabilities (PWDs) will not have to wait long to get their financial aid from the Cebu City government.

This as the City Council amended Sections 5 and 7 of City Ordinance (CO) 2456 allowing the monthly distribution of aid, instead of giving it on a quarterly basis.

There are 9,986 PWDs registered in Cebu City. Each gets an annual P12,000 in financial assistance.

The amendatory ordinance authored by Councilor Lea Japson mandates that PWDs who had been registered in the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in 2013 and prior years will get the financial aid.

At present, only those registered until 2010 are receiving the cash aid.

Japson said PWDs are having difficulty in securing stable jobs.

“The registered PWDs in 2013 need government assistance as they cannot sustain their health maintenance,” she said.

The amendatory ordinance, which the council approved on February 5, will still be submitted though to Mayor Edgardo Labella for final approval.

Section 1 of Japson’s amendatory ordinance modified Section 5 of CO 2456, which grants P12,000 annual financial assistance or P3,000 every quarter to qualified PWDs.

Section 7 of CO 2456 grants cash aid to PWDs registered in 2010 and below. CO 2456 was penned by Councilor Eugenio Gabuya.

Once approved by Labella, the distribution will be done on a monthly basis or P1,000 per month, and the assistance will cover those registered in 2013.

In case of a minor PWD, the amendatory ordinance stated that any of his/her parent, legal guardian, or nearest kin should be a registered voter to avail of the aid.

Under CO 2456, PWDs who are already in the payroll but failed to claim their financial assistance for two consecutive distributions will be deleted from the payroll and may apply as re-applicants at the city’s Department of Social Welfare and Services.

Citing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons With Disabilities’ report, the Department of Health said PWDs are those “those who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others.”

DOH said over 1 billion people, or approximately 15 percent of the world’s population, have some form of disability.

About 110 to 190 million people, aged 15 years and older, have significant difficulties in functioning with 80 percent living in low-income countries wherein majority of residents are poor and do not have access to basic services, it added.  KQD (FREEMAN)