Manila Mayor Isko Moreno announced that 28,364 financially vulnerable senior citizens in the city will receive a total of ₱171,957,000 in social pension benefits from the Department of Social Welfare and Development covering July to December 2025.
Each beneficiary will receive ₱6,000, with the distribution scheduled on December 11, 12, and 13 through a coordinated effort between the city government and the national government.
All recipients are listed under the DSWD’s Social Pension Program, which assists elderly Filipinos with no steady income or dependable family support. The mayor said the payout is part of the city’s priority programs to protect the most economically disadvantaged residents.
Moreno also announced that Manila is pushing through with its annual Noche Buena distribution, aiming to provide food packs for more than 700,000 families this Christmas. He said the city opted to divert funds originally set aside for holiday decorations to ensure households have food on their tables.
He explained that the city followed its guiding policy of prioritizing essential needs over non-essential spending. “Sikmura muna ang unahin bago ang mga bagay at gastos na kaya pa namang maghintay,” Moreno said, citing the need to support residents despite budget limitations at City Hall.
The Noche Buena package includes rice, pasta, canned goods, and ingredients traditionally used for holiday meals. Moreno said the program was made possible despite tight finances, emphasizing that the city found ways to preserve the long-standing tradition so families in Manila can still celebrate Christmas with dignity.
City departments have been instructed to coordinate with barangay leaders to ensure smooth distribution of both the social pension benefits and the Noche Buena packs in the coming days.
