Thinking Aloud!

By: Reymar R. Mansilungan
Former NCSC Commissioner
THE DSWD ADIVISORY REQUIRING SOCPEN BENEFICIARIES TO PRESENT PHILSYS ID BEFORE COLLECTING SOCIAL
PENSION BENEFITS IS OPPRESIVE TO THE BENEFICIARIES
On March 11, 2026, the DSWD, made the following official announcement:
“PABATID SA PUBLIKO:
Simula Abril 1, 2026, ang Philippine Identification System (PhilSys) o National ID na ang kikilalaning pangunahing ID ng DSWD sa payout ng Social Pension for Indigent Senior Citizens.
Ang mga benepisyaryong wala pang National ID ay hinihikayat na magparehistro sa pinakamalapit na tanggapan ng Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA). Magkakaroon din ng PhilSys registration tuwing payout para mapadali ang pagpaparehistro ng ating mga senior citizens.”
In essence, the DSWD, will no longer accept the OSCA ID, as the primary ID, in identifying the beneficiaries of the social pension program. A deviation from the original intent of the Senior Citizens Act, RA 7432, as amended.
In context, a few months back, the NCSC, PSA, DTI, DOH, and others, promulgated a Joint Memorandum (JM), mandating the acceptance of the PhilSys ID, in lieu of the OSCA ID, in the grant of Senior Citizens discount, provided by RA 7432, as amended. The said JM, did not ebb the worth of the OSCA ID, it complemented it.
On the other hand, the said DSWD official advisory, replacing the OSCA ID, with PhilSys ID, as the primary ID, in collecting the social pension, is oppressive to the Senior citizens. Unnecessary, making life of beneficiaries more difficult and falls under “abuse of power”. It constitutes “evident bad faith” or “manifest partiality” to cause “undue injury” (unnecessary burden/expense) to the social pension beneficiaries. Whoever approved the new guidelines committed “abuse of power”. Why so?
Republic Act 11350, the National Commission of Senior Citizens Act, mandates that all programs for senior citizens, being implemented by the DSWD, including the social pension, shall be transitioned to the NCSC, not later than September 17, 2022.
On the other hand, RA 11916, the amendment to RA 9994 (on social pension), mandated that the social pension shall be transferred to the NCSC, not later than August 2025. The said law also mandated that the NCSC shall promulgate the IRR and the guidelines in the implementation of the social pension, regardless of which agency implements the program.
Executive Order No. 96, mandated that the social pension implementation shall be retained by the DSWD. A petition for certiorari, questioning the constitutionality of EO 96, is pending before the Supreme Court, hence, its merits cannot be discussed.
However, the law is clear, whichever agency shall implement the social pension program pursuant to RA 9994, as amended by RA 11916, the agency mandated to promulgate the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) and its Guidelines, shall be the NCSC.
Section 16, of the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR), of RA 11916, AN ACT INCREASING THE SOCIAL PENSION OF INDIGENT SENIOR CITIZENS AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7432, ENTITLED “AN ACT TO MAXIMIZE THE CONTRIBUTION OF SENIOR CITIZENS TO NATION-BUILDING, GRANT BENEFITS AND SPECIAL PRIVILEGES, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES”, AS AMENDED, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, reads:
“SEC. 16. Issuance of Implementing Guidelines. – The NCSC shall issue implementing guidelines for social pension, social safety nets, updates on validation of list of beneficiaries, frequency of distributions and other that may arise in the implementation of the IRR, in consultation with stakeholders and other relevant agencies and instrumentalities.”
Therefore, the DSWD, usurped the authority of the NCSC, in amending the Guidelines of replacing the OSCA ID, with the PhilSys ID, as the primary ID, in collecting the social pension.
On the other hand, the most recent law that amended the OSCA provision in RA 7432, is RA 9994, AN ACT GRANTING ADDITIONAL BENEFITS AND PRIVILEGES TO SENIOR CITIZENS, FURTHER AMENDING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 7432, AS AMENDED, 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 6, of said law, (OSCA Functions), paragraph (c) and (g), reads:
“x x x The OSCA shall have the following functions:
(c) To maintain and regularly update on a quarterly basis the list of senior citizens and to issue national individual identification cards, free of charge, which shall be valid anywhere in the country;
X X X
(g) To assist the senior citizens in filing complaints or charges against any individual, establishments, business entity, institution, or agency refusing to comply with the privileges under this Act before the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office, the regional or the municipal trial court, the municipal trial court in cities, or the municipal circuit trial court.”
Therefore, in the unlikely event that a beneficiary is oppressed by the staff of the DSWD, in the implementation of the social pension program, the law mandates that the OSCA, under the office of the LCE, shall assist the senior citizen in filing complaints or charges, which will be brought to zilch, if the OSCA ID, is no longer the primary ID, in collecting social pension, as it will decrease the attachment of the senior citizen with the OSCA.
Let it be emphasized that the concern in the said DSWD issuance is the replacement of the OSCA ID, as primary ID, in collecting social pension. If it was mandated that the PhilSys ID, will be accepted, in lieu of the latter, then it would have been acceptable.
In parallel, it violated Administrative Order No. 23, February 21, 2020, ELIMINATING OVERREGULATION TO PROMOTE EFFICIENCY OF GOVERNMENT PROCESSES. Section 1, reads:
“Section 1. Elimination of Overregulation. All national government agencies covered by Section 3 of RA No. 9485, as amended, are directed to hasten the reform of their processes in order to eliminate overregulation. They shall retain only such steps, procedures and requirements as may be necessary to fulfill their legal mandates and policy objectives. All processes in excess thereof, including those which are redundant or burdensome to the public, shall be deemed manifestations of overregulation and shall be removed accordingly.
In pursuit of the reforms directed herein, the entirety of an agency’s processes for the availing of its services shall be subject to scrutiny, from the most established and longstanding aspects thereof to the most recent. The imposition of tedious or time-consuming regulations on socially beneficial activities, as to render such activity impossible or extremely difficult to undertake, shall be especially targeted for reform.”
It must be considered that millions of Filipinos, despite having registered with the PSA, for the issuance of the PhilSys IDs, are yet to receive their IDs, despite the lapse of two to three years from date of application. In contrast, the OSCA ID, or its replacement, in case of loss, is secured in a matter of hours, making it the most convenient.
It now begs the questions:
1. Was the issuance made to increase the number of unclaimed social pension for unscrupulous scheme?
2. Or was it made for political glorification of DSWD officials?
Our request to the DSWD:
“Stop oppressing the senior citizens with your lousy ideas.”
“Do not usurp the authority of the NCSC”
“Stop pretending that ‘you know better’ than the senior citizens”