Government should share in caring for seniors

Before senior citizens rejoice over news that more discounts are in store for them, it would be good to check the bottom figures first.

While the general citizenry appreciates the fact that the government has finally conceded support for the senior generation, there are other stakeholders in this hot issue whose interests have weighed in for serious consideration. As it stands right now, seniors here enjoy a 20 percent discount on food and medicines plus total VAT exemption on these purchases. Some cities even give them free access to movie houses and cash allowances monthly. So, while Grandpa and Grandma enjoy the approximately 32 percent discount, establishments have bewailed the loss of income equivalent to this 20 percent discount and the Department of Finance (DoF) is crying that they lose about P1 billion a year in the VAT exemption provision for the seniors.

While there is a growing clamor for more discounts for the elderly, the DoF is instead calling for a review of the Seniors Act. In the past, the clamor of various groups representing the senior citizens was for a 30 percent discount for food and medicines. However, when the bill passed through the bicameral process, the lawmakers instead opted for a 20 percent discount plus VAT exemption, to the consternation of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the DOF.

Now the DOF is pushing for a 30 percent discount across the board for food and drugs for senior citizens but please, please retain the VAT on these goods, they say, which is a huge chunk of funds for the cash-strapped agency. The drug companies, drug stores and restaurants however maintain that at 30 percent, it effectively wipes out their profit margins. Senior citizens account for the bulk of drug store regular customers and, as for restaurants, these are the people who can afford to dine out frequently—they are generally retired with a lot of time in their hands and a retirement nest to boot. So, theoretically, if it gets passed, it’s 30 percent against the present 32 percent.

If the government is really serious in showing their support for the seniors, they should also have a stake in it. If they scrap entirely the VAT exemption and just pass on the burden of the additional discounts to the commercial establishments, where is their stake here? It’s like saying, hey Gramps, I’m giving you more discounts, and then proceeds to twist someone else’s arm to up the discount, offering no equitable leverage.

The DOF says this is their targeted approach—to up the discounts but charge the VAT fully, which only puts the whole burden on the commercial establishments. Ultimately, these commercial establishments will not want to absorb the full burden and will adjust their prices, passing on the burden to the consumers in general—that us.

A “must-be-there” affair

My all-time favorite is coming to town again courtesy of Cel and Renen De Guia’s Ovation Productions which has brought in countless of oldies but sterling goodies at the Big Dome in recent years. I’m talking of the great Dionne Warwick, a 5-time Grammy Award winner whose career has spanned four decades. Not too many artists can claim such longevity, but trust the De Guia couple to hunt them down and bring them over to regale their loyal Filipino fans.

I am one such fan, and if I have to name just one all-time favorite among these artists, it would have to be Dionne Warwick whose mellow, effortless voice I can listen to all night long. Further proof is that when I was still a Disc Jockey, I used to host a full hour radio program exclusively playing DW’s songs over at ABS-CBN’s DZQL, which used to be the country’s top pop music station prior to the proclamation of Martial Law. That was during the time when most stations were on the AM band and only one or two on FM. And Dionne had already a phenomenal following in the country then judging by the hundreds of phone-in requests I receive everyday—and that’s no bull. 

The first time she came to the country was way back in the seventies, at the Cultural Center I think it was, and I remember the prices were pretty steep at that time. I made sure I got good seats for myself and my wife Babes who was still my girlfriend then, never mind that the tickets set me back by a week’s salary back then. That’s how much THE Dionne Warwick meant to me, and still does.

Come Nov. 27, I will definitely brave whatever typhoons, if any, to listen to this great singer as she warbles Alfie, Walk On By, Don’t Make Me Over, That’s What Friends Are For, A House Is Not A Home and I’ll Never Love This Way Again, Make It Easy On Yourself, I Say A Little Prayer, and Do You Know the Way to San Jose (which won for Dionne her very first Grammy), just to name a few among my favorites.

Dionne gelled so well with another great artist, Burt Bacharach and later on Hal David, another gem in the music world, who wrote some of Dionne’s hits. Three of these singles (Walk On By, Alfie and Don’t Make Me Over) stand proudly in the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Don’t miss out on this great event—Nov. 27 at the Araneta Coliseum which also features Arthur Manuntag, and for her Cebuano fans, on Nov. 28 at the Waterfront Cebu. These are strictly one-day concerts in both venues, so get your tickets early and let’s swoon together.

Biggest outdoor auto display and test drive

Nov. 4 – 7, 2010, that’s Thursday to Sunday, are red-letter days for all automobile enthusiasts when everyone converges at the SM Mall of Asia (MOA) for the BDO 2010 Auto Focus Motorshow & Auto Expo.

This is the first partnership of the SM MOA and Sunshine Television (STV). The much-awaited biggest outdoor auto grand display and test drive is presented to the motoring public by BDO Auto Loan, today’s preferred banker for fast and efficient auto loans.

All the current automobile models will be on display at the SM MOA Concert Grounds, a one-stop shop for all the latest model sedans, pick-ups, vans, AUVs and SUVs and dazzling sports cars from the country’s manufacturers, importers and distributors.

Now on its 6th staging, the timing of the BDO 2010 Auto Focus Motor Show & Auto Expo is perfect for the Yuletide season as car enthusiasts and families are expected to troop to Asia’s biggest mall to see the grandest and latest vehicles in the country.

See you all at the SM Mall of Asia Concert Grounds on Nov. 4-7 and that’s starting this coming Thursday. Admission is free!!

Mabuhay!!! Be proud to be a Filipino.

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