BY CHRYSEE G. SAMILLANO
A resolution supporting the passage of Senate Bill 671 or “An act educating the public, senior citizens, their families and their caregivers on identifying and preventing fraudulent activities targeting senior citizens,” was approved by the Bacolod Sangguniang Panlungsod yesterday.
The resolution authored by Councilor Celia Flor said Senator Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada filed Senate Bill 671, which aims to form a centralized inter-agency service for consumer education on mail, telemarketing, and internet fraud targeting the elderly on July this year.
This measure aims to protect our senior citizens against fraudulent activities through proactive and centralized information and education campaigns –considering that most of the elderly consumers are unfamiliar with today’s technology and the organized crime syndicates are taking advantage of the general public’s heightened use of social media and virtual platforms, it said.
Both the Philippine National Police and the National Bureau of Investigation have reported that most of the victims that fall prey to unscrupulous individuals are senior citizens, the resolution said.
The chair of the SP Committee on Senior Citizens and Veterans Affairs believes that there is a need to look after the vulnerable sectors against scammers and fraudsters and that this bill will be beneficial to the senior citizens of the City of Bacolod, it added.*
