The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on Monday reported that it provided initial assistance to an elderly man in Cebu City who was arrested for playing the harmonica on the streets to buy food for his hungry grandchild.

Through the agency’s Pag-abot Program, the DSWD Central Visayas Field Office visited 68-year-old Ireneo Selma Vidal to assess his living conditions and determine the appropriate intervention under the program.

“We immediately dispatched our personnel to assist Tatay Ireneo after learning about his situation so we can ensure that he and his grandchildren will have something to eat without him resorting to the streets,” DSWD Assistant Secretary Irene Dumlao said.

The agency qualified the senior citizen for support under the Pag-abot Comprehensive Social Package and distributed P10,000 in financial assistance as initial aid.

Dumlao added that the elderly man should already be resting at home, noting the dangers on the streets amid the extreme heat.

The senior had reportedly spent more than a year relying on small donations from passersby while playing the “selendron” or harmonica before being arrested on Thursday, 7 May, by the Cebu City Anti-Mendicancy Office (CCAMO).

Further assessment showed that the grandfather has difficult living conditions in a house owned by the family of his daughter, leading him to provide for his own needs, as well as those of his three-year-old grandchild and other grandchildren who often stay with him. 

“It is heartbreaking to see a grandparent risk his life on the streets just to feed his grandchild, which is why we are preparing long-term interventions to keep him safe,” the DSWD Spokesperson said.