Bontoc centenarian receives P100-K cash

By Alpine L. Killa

BONTOC, Mountain Province – Another centenarian in this capital town was included in the list of centenarian awardees that was recognized by the Department of Social Welfare and Development.

A centenarian is defined as someone who is one hundred years old or older. 100 –year old Herbert Malecdan Todyog who was born on March 10, 1918 and resides in Barangay Alab Oriente, Bontoc, Mountain Province recently received from the personnel of the DSWD the P100, 000 cash incentive.

The incentive is a form of assistance and recognition to Todyog for reaching the centenary age. Also, it is the department’s contribution in the implementation of Republic Act 10868 or the Centenarians Act of 2016, also known as an “Act Honoring and Granting Additional Benefits and Privileges to Filipino Centenarians, and for Other Purposes.”

Social Welfare Officer III Araceli Shane Bayanos of the Municipal Social Welfare and Development Office (MSWDO) said that Todyog was blessed with one child. From his only biological son, he has four grandchildren. From his four grandchildren, he has now 23 great grandchildren and eight great-great grandchildren.  Aside from his biological son, he has an adopted daughter who is staying in Baguio City.

He lives alone in his house where his adopted daughter, grandchildren and great grandchildren visit him, attend to his needs, and provide him basic necessities. He prefers to live separately from his grandchildren’s families despite their efforts to convince him to stay with any of them.

Bayanos relayed that 100-year old Todyog can still walk and has clear eyesight. The simple living in the village eating organically-grown food like camote, banana, squash and legumes which they themselves plant and grow is believed to be the reason of his long life much so that he was never hospitalized.

Apart from the P100, 000 that centenarian Todyog received from the DSWD, he earlier received P30, 000 cash incentive from the Provincial Government of Mountain Province in October last year.

On the part of the municipal government through its MSWDO, its counterpart is to provide technical assistance in the preparation of the necessary documents of the centenarian to be submitted to the Provincial Social Welfare and Development Office for referral at the DSWD regional office.