Tambuling Batangas Publication April 17-23, 2019 Issue | Page 5

OPINYON
April 17-23, 2019
Visita Iglesia within the walls of Intramuros
By Jimmyley E. Guzman
Photos courtesy of Intramuros Administration.
Filipinos
practice
various
traditions in observance of the
Holy Week like the ‘Pabasa,’
‘Senakulo,’ ‘Prusisyon,’ and
‘Visita Iglesia,’ among others.

Most Filipinos also take
some time to go home to their
provinces where traditions such
as these are still being practiced.

The Lenten season
starts on Ash Wednesday, which
also marks the 40-day period of
fasting and penance for Catholics.

In
Metro
Manila,
Filipino devotees can also partake
in the traditional Visita Iglesia
wherein devotees visit Churches,
chapels and pray the ‘Way of the
Cross.’

This year, the walled city
Honoring and caring for the veterans
By Juliet B. Saley
(PIA) -- Every April 9 is declared
as
“Araw ng Kagitingan” or
Day of Valor when the nation
commemorates the heroism of
Filipino and American soldiers
who fought the Japanese World
War II.

In many areas of the
country such as Bontoc, Mountain
Province , the day is marked by
parade, wreath laying and program
paying tribute to the war veterans
who fought courageously the
foreign invaders to gain freedom
for the country that is being enjoyed
by the present generation.

The
celebration in
the province is being led by
the Veterans Federation of the
Philippines
(VFP)-Mountain
Province District.

Reflecting on the theme
of this year’s Araw ng Kagitingan
celebration,
“Sakripisyo
ng
Beterano ay Gunitain, Gawing
Tanglaw ng Kabataan Tungo sa
Kaunlaran,” Police Provincial
Director Col. Clarence C. Casillo
stressed that the youth of today
should let this event serve as
constant reminder and as a challenge
that the liberty, the freedom we are
experiencing now was paid off by
the precious blood and tears of our
heroes, the veterans.

Wreath laying at the
Veterans Memorial Park is one
of the highlights of Araw ng
Kagitingan commemoration in
Bontoc, Mountain Province.
Who are the veterans?

VFP-Mountain Province
District president Paulo P. Pagteilan
said veterans, as
defined in
amended Republic Act No. 6948,
are those who rendered honorable
military service in the land, sea, or
air forces of the Philippines during
the revolution against Spain and
World War II; those who fought
in Korea during the Korean war
called the PEFTOK (Philippine
Expeditionary Force to Korea) , and
those who fought in Vietnam War
in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s
called the PHILCAG (Philippine
Civic Action Group).

Retired personnel of the
AFP who reached the retirement
age and those that were discharged
and left the service honorably are
called the post war veterans.

The Philippine Veterans
Affairs Office (PVAO) is mandated
to look after the care and treatment
of veterans and keeping their
patriotic services ever fresh in the
memory of the Filipino people
particularly the young.

Based on the records of
the PVAO, there are still seven
surviving WWII veterans in the
province. Of the seven, two each
are in the municipalities of Bontoc
who are 93 and 94 years old and
in Tadian who are 94 and 95 years
old. The municipalities of Sagada,
Sadanga and Paraceles have one
each aged 90, 98 and 100 years
old, respectively. Veteran Andres
Baglinit Wanason of Butigue,
Paracelis turned 100 in March 3,
2019.
For all their sacrifices, what are the
benefits for veterans?
Wilma
Chao-angan
Padngara, Head of the Field
Extension Service Office of
Philippine Veterans Affairs Office
in the Cordillera Region provided
updates on the programs and
benefits for the veterans.

She shared the good news
that long awaited old-age pension
increase was approved by President
Rodrigo Duterte on December
20, 2018 under Republic Act No.
11164 or “An Act Increasing the
Pension of Senior Veterans.”
Wilma
Chao-angan
Padngaran of PVAO-CAR with
93 year-old veteran Benito Yadao
Miranda of Poblacion, Bontoc
during this year’s Veterans Week
and 77th Araw Ng Kagitingan.
PVAO records show there are
seven surviving WWII veterans
in the province, two each from
the municipalities Bontoc and
Tadian, and one each from the
municipalities of Sagada, Sadanga
and Paracelis. (JBS-PIA CAR, Mt.
Province)

Surviving WWII veterans
including PEFTOK and PHILCAG
who do not have any other pension
from the AFP shall receive P20,
000.00 age-old pension from the
P5, 000.00
effective January
2019. The pension though is not
transferrable to any family member
or dependent when they die.

Padngara also informed
that educational benefit for
of Intramuros will open its gates
again to be the center of liturgical
activities for the observance of
Holy Week.

Tourists
and
the
devotees
will
have
the
opportunity of visiting nine
(9)
Churches/Chapels/Prayer
Grounds for the Visita Iglesia,
a traditional practice wherein
devotees visit and pray in at
least seven separate churches
and the Via Crucis, which refers
to the series of images depicting
Jesus Christ on the day of his
crucifixion that accompanied by
prayers and reflections.

The nine Churches
and Chapels include: Manila
Cathedral, San Agustin Church,
Fr. Willman Chapel, PLM
Chapel, Mapua Chapel, Lyceum
of the Philippines University
Chapel, Colegio de San Juan de
Letran Chapel, BIR Chapel, and
the Fort Santiago Chapel.
The
Intramuros
Administration encourages the
public who would go on Visita
Iglesia to observe the following
guidelines: follow queues and
line-up properly, not disturbing devotees by taking photos with
flash, and observance of silence
especially when in houses of
prayer.

The public is also
encouraged to throw and
segregate trash in the proper trash
bins and avoid using disposable
plastic water bottles and bring
reusable tumblers instead.

The public is also
encouraged to wear decent
clothing.
The
chapels/prayer
sanctuary is open on Maundy
Thursday (April 18), from
9:00am to 12:00mn. And on Good
Friday (April 19), from 9:00am to
7:00pm. The ‘Penetencia’ will be
held also on Maundy Thursday at
7:00pm.

Meanwhile, as part of
the Department of Tourism’s
approach to sustainable tourism,
Intramuros Administration has
partnered with Maynilad Water
Services to give pilgrims and
tourists free drinking water at
Plaza Roma wherein the public
is invited to bring their own
reusable tumblers. (Intramuros
Administration/CBCP)
WWII, PEFTOK and PHILCAG
beneficiaries had also increased
from P36, 000.00 to P40, 000.00
per school year
For
the
veterans
hospitalization and health care
benefits of veterans, aside from
free health care services at the
Veterans
Memorial
Medical
Center (VMMC) in Quezon City,
veterans and their dependents are
entitled to a subsidy of P1, 500.00
per day of hospital confinement
up to a maximum of 45 days per
year. However, confinements to
private hospitals are subject for
reimbursement which shall be
submitted to VMMC not later than
180 days upon discharged.

Other special services for
veterans which are reimbursable
in nature include hearing aid not
to exceed P30,000.00 per device;
cataract surgery not to exceed
P14,000.00 per eye; dentures not
to exceed P5,000.00 (P2,500 each
for upper and lower dentures);
orthopedic braces not to exceed
P6,000.00 per device, and Cranial
CT Scan not to exceed P4,000.00.
For
hemodialysis
treatment in excess of 90 treatments
covered by PhilHealth, P2,500.00
per treatment will be reimbursed.
For other C00T Scan and MRI
procedures, amount will be based
on the VMMC rate.
For
Out
Patient
Department maintenance medicines
for hypertension, diabetes mellitus,
hypercholesterolemia,
prostate, anti-psychotic drugs and oral
antibiotics, and other Philippine
National Drug Formulary, these
shall also be reimbursed at cost
but not to exceed its Philippine
National Drug Reference Index
ceiling price.

Other benefits include
burial assistance and death pension
for
beneficiaries of deceased
veterans.
Annual validation of veterans

A continuous program
of PVAO is the annual validation/
updating to verify, monitor and
confirm the recent status of its
pensioners . This is done through
biometrics to pensioners who can
personally appear at PVAO Baguio
City.

For pensioners who
cannot personally appear at PVAO,
they are required to comply with
the requirements for the Pensioner’s
Update Form.

Validation of pensioners
is also conducted through PhilPost
wherein its staff personally
validates the status of pensioners
specially the centenarian veterans
through skype, and home visit or
spot verification.

As the government
continues to ensure the well being
of the veterans, may they continue
inspiring and guiding the present
generation to defend and love the
country and keep themselves away
from twisted idealism, destructive
devices and corrupt practices.
(JDP/JBS-PIA CAR, Mt. Province)
The Veterans Federation of the Philippines ( VFP) - Mountain Province District spearheads the celebration of the
Veterans Week and the 77th Araw Ng Kagitingan at the Veterans Park, Provincial Plaza on April 9, 2019.