₱3,000 monthly pension for indigent, elderly, disabled farmers sought

A P3,000 monthly pension and insurance coverage for indigent, elderly and disabled farmers has been proposed in the House of Representatives.

Leyte Representative Martin Romualdez made the proposal under House Bill 7663, or the Comprehensive Farmers’ Pension and Social Protection Act, saying a monthly pension and insurance for qualified farmers is crucial for providing financial security, reducing poverty and ensuring a decent standard of living in their later years.

The bill provides that the Department of Agriculture (DA), in coordination with the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) and Philippine Crop Insurance Corp., implement the farmers’ pension program covering a P3,000 monthly pension and basic life and disability insurance for farmers not covered by SSS and GSIS.

In addition, the bill mandates the DA to allow direct beneficiary or household member claims through accredited banks, cooperatives, or remittance centers.

The cap for basic life insurance is at P50,000, while accident and disability assistance is set at up to P25,000 per claim.

Funds for the pension and insurance program will be included in the annual budget of DA and DSWD.

“Because many farmers face low, variable incomes and often work past traditional retirement age due to financial necessity, pensions offer a guaranteed, regular income source, reducing their dependence on family members or the need to sell off assets to cover living expenses,” he said.

The bill defines an elderly farmer as someone aged 60 years old and above who is not currently receiving any pension from Social Security System, Government Service Insurance System or any private retirement system.

A disabled farmer, on the other hand, is defined as “a farmer with a medically certified physician or mental impairment, permanently or temporarily incapacitated for the performance of farm work in which he/she was habitually engaged.”

In addition, the bill classifies an indigent farmer as someone officially classified as such by their respective local government unit based on the data collection at the local level, supervised by the Philippine Statistics Authority in accordance with Republic Act No. 11315, otherwise known as the Community-Based Monitoring System Act.”

Ultimately, the bill states that a farmer is “any individual primarily and directly engaged in crop production, livestock raising, aquaculture, or other agriculture-related work, whether as landowner, tenant, or agricultural worker.

Those who will be found to have defrauded the government using the farmers’ pension program will face a penalty of imprisonment of one month to one year, or a fine of P10,000 to P100,000, or both.

If the offender is a public officer, he or she will be temporarily disqualified from holding public office, in addition to administrative and criminal sanctions. — BM, GMA Integrated News