President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed two significant bills into law on Monday to empower Filipino products and to honor the country’s senior citizens.
The Chief Executive inked the Tatak Pinoy Act (Republic Act 11981) and an amendment to the Centenarian Act (RA 11982) before legislators led by Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri and Speaker Martin Romualdez in Malacañang.
The Tatak Pinoy Act, which Marcos had marked as urgent, aims to boost the production and provision of more Filipino goods and services.
“The Tatak Pinoy Act is about investing in Filipino competence and talent — that genius and gift must be supported not by exhortation alone but by true, tangible support,” Marcos said in his speech.
“It is about creating products and services of the highest quality because Tatak Pinoy is also about excellence, and as a seal of great workmanship it must only be applied to those that meet these high standards, and as such we shall give preference and priority to our products,” he said.
The President also signed an amendment to RA 11982, the Centenarian Law, giving P10,000 to every Filipino upon reaching the ages of 80, 85, 90 and 95.
Previously, the Centenarian Law applied only to Filipinos who reached 100 years of age when they were given P100,000.
The President joked that the growing number of older lawmakers might have been to blame for the law’s amendment. “We might be suspected of having passed this bill for ourselves in preparation for our dotage,” he said.
Marcos emphasized the need for a comprehensive support system beyond financial aid, highlighting the societal responsibility to cater to the needs of the growing elderly population.
“The expansion of the coverage of the Centenarians Act is a homage to the Filipino trait of compassion, and in our culture none are showered with more kind and loving care than our elderly,” he said.
“We do, after all, stand on the shoulders of these giants. But they deserve more than cash in an envelope. What they should get is a support infrastructure that every society owes to its greying population,” the President added.
Senator Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. on Monday vowed to continue pushing for measures to benefit more senior citizens.
“This was my promise to the Filipino elders and I’m proud to say that I fulfilled it,” Revilla, the principal author of the expanded Centenarian Law, said.
“With all the things our elders have done for our country, we should assure that they will receive all the honor and benefits they deserve,” he added.
