Former PNP chief and senatorial candidate Guillermo Eleazar urged the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to immediately approve the PHP5,000 minimum wage subsidy for workers so the Filipinos can manage the rising consumer prices. 

According to Eleazar, the PHP5,000 subsidy that will be provided would help the public to take their time to recover from the pandemic and also with the spiking of oil prices. 

“While the economy has been recovering gradually, it will still take time before workers hard hit by the pandemic get on their feet again as they are now being affected by the spike in oil prices.” Eleazar said in a statement. 

Eleazar also added that the minimum subsidy would benefit the government in reviving the Philippines’ economy. 

Meanwhile, DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III emphasized that he already proposed a provision that will give a PHP5,000 minimum subsidy to 1 million workers that are affected by the pandemic. 

The Trade Union of the Congress filed a subsequent petition to increase to PHP470 wage hike after their former petition was rejected, according to National Capital Region-Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (NCR-RTWPB). 

Eleazar, as PNP chief, also pushed for resolving the mental health issue in PNP and if elected as senator, he vowed to strengthen the Philippine Mental Health Act. 

Mental illness remained as the primary dilemma of the country, especially during the pandemic. 

The senatorial aspirant stated that the parents and the children are the most affected as they need to cope with the stress and also the online distance learning. 

Barangay workers, according to Eleazar, should be trained to handle those individuals who have mental health issues.  

If elected to the senate, he would allocate a bigger portion of the budget to mental health services particularly in strengthening the capacity of mental health facilities, maintaining their operational purposes, and hiring more government workers to focus more on Filipinos who are suffering from the mental health issues.

Photo Credit: Facebook/GeneralEleazar