Cash gift of 10,000 pesos will not go to 'all Filipino senior citizens'

Published on March 19, 2024 at 08:29
3 min read
By Jan Cuyco, AFP Philippines

An amendment to Philippine law will give 10,000 pesos (180 dollars) to Filipinos who turn 80, 85, 90 or 95, contrary to claims made in videos viewed tens of thousands of times online that all senior citizens -- which the country classifies as anyone over 60 -- will receive the cash. The eligibility criteria for the handout is laid out in the text of the amendment and was explained by President Ferdinand Marcos when it was signed into law.

"Wow!! This is such good news!! As long as you're a senior citizen, you will receive 10k. This isn't selective, it's for everyone," reads the Tagalog-language title of a YouTube video posted on February 29, 2024.

Filipinos who are at least 60 years old are classified as senior citizens (archived link).

The video, which has been viewed more than 47,000 times, appears to show various photos of senior citizens lining up to receive the supposed cash gift.

The video's narration talks about how the Philippine government plans to distribute the money to the elderly.

Screenshot of the misleading YouTube video, captured on March 13, 2024

Other videos claiming all senior citizens would receive the cash gift were shared elsewhere on YouTube here, here and here and on Facebook here and here.

Comments on the videos appeared to show elderly social media users left disappointed for not receiving the financial aid.

"I'm 65 years old but I haven't received this government subsidy," read one comment.

Another read: "How about us pensioners from the social security system? I'm 67 years old and I have maintenance medicine. What about us?"

The claim surfaced as President Ferdinand Marcos signed an amendment to the Centenarians Act of 2016 -- which gives 10,000 pesos to Filipinos turning 100 -- to expand the handout to citizens turning 80, 85, 90 and 95. (archived link).

Expanded Centenarians Act

Marcos explained the eligibility criteria for the cash award at the amendment's signing ceremony (archived link).

"Under the new law, Filipinos, upon reaching the age of 80, shall receive a cash gift of 10,000 pesos and every five years thereafter and upon reaching the age of 85, 90, and until 95," he said.

Keyword searches on Google using phrases from the misleading video's narration led to audio lifted from a segment on the "Ted Failon and DJ Chacha" radio news show that aired on February 28 (archived link).

The programme's hosts interviewed NCSC chairman Franklin Quijano about the law's implementation and intended beneficiaries.

At the show's 6:28 mark, Quijano said that "those aged 80, 85, 90, 95 this year will receive the 10,000 peso cash aid".

He did not say that all Filipino senior citizens would receive the cash.

Furthermore, the video uses images from various unrelated events, including photos showing the Philippine social welfare agency distributing handouts and aid.

A Google reverse image search of one photo shown at the misleading clip's 12-second mark corresponds to a picture posted on social media platform X by the official account of Philippines' social welfare agency on February 2, 2024 (archived link).

In the post, the agency says the picture shows a social pension being paid out to poor senior citizens in Quezon City.

Below is a screenshot comparison of the image used in the misleading clip (left) and the photo posted by the Philippines' social welfare agency on February 2 (right):

Screenshot comparison of the image used in the misleading clip (left) and the social welfare agency''s photo (right)

Philippine fact-checking organisation Vera Files has also debunked the claim (archived link).

AFP has previously fact-checked misleading claims about supposed cash handouts in the Philippines, such as here, here and here.

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