I HAD the pleasure of meeting CPA/lawyer/former congressman Godofredo "Fred" Arquiza the past month, and we had a lively series of conversations regarding his advocacy for senior citizens. Being one, I wanted to know how to better improve the quality of life after retirement for 9,242,121 senior citizens, those above 60 years old in 2020, according to the Philippine Statistics Authority. I also wanted to know whether there would be a better way of airing concerns for seniors rather than calling a hotline and bare your heart out to a call center representative who doesn't think (I suspect they are not allowed to) and just replies to you by reading a script. Bear in mind that the older the senior citizen gets, the faster he/she will be unable to do the things that they once did with ease. Thus, senior citizens are interconnected with the sector of persons with disabilities.
I learned that Atty. Arquiza had established an organization for senior citizens called Ang Tinig ng Senior Citizens party-list, a political organization dedicated to advocating for the rights and welfare of the elderly population in the country. With a growing number of senior citizens facing various challenges in terms of health care, financial security and social inclusion, the role of this party-list becomes crucial in ensuring that the needs of the elderly are recognized and addressed by the government and society at large.
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