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[av_heading heading=’It pays to grow old in Negros Occ.; 24 centenarians receive P100T each ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY TIFFANY ANNE TAN
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BACOLOD City – Twenty-four centenarians in the province of Negros Occidental were honored yesterday during the celebration of the 118th Cinco de Noviembre.
The centenarians, who received a cash incentive of P100 thousand each, came from the cities and municipalities of San Carlos, Sagay, Victorias, Talisay, La Carlota, Kabankalan, Sipalay, Silay, Manapla, Valladolid, La Castellana, Binalbagan, and Candoni.
Cinco de Noviembre or Negros Day was a political movement that in 1898 created a government in Negros Island, informally ending Spanish control of the island and resulting in a government run by the Negrense natives, at least for that part of the archipelago and for a relatively short period.
According to Merle Garcia of the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office, the oldest of the centenarians is a 105-year-old from Silay City.
Aside from the cash incentive and plaques of appreciation, the 24 centenarians will also be enjoying health benefits from the Negros Occidental Comprehensive Health Program (NOCHP).
The provincial government allocated P2.4 million for the program this year while last year, a total of P7.4 million was set aside for 74 centenarians.
Out of the 24 centenarians, four were posthumously cited.
On February 2015, the Provincial Board approved the Negros First Centenarian Act which grants a one-time cash incentive worth P100,000 to centenarians.
Under the ordinance, the beneficiaries must be a resident of Negros Occidental for at least three years. Those living in Bacolod City are not qualified.
Aside from recognizing the centenarians, five outstanding Negrenses were also honoured yesterday.
This year’s honorees were Cecile Nava for education and literature, Anna Balcells for humanitarian and civic work, Ramon Peñalosa for environmental protection advocacy, Federico Barredo for entrepreneurship, and Erik Charles Matti for cinematic arts./PN
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