AT LAST, a new member of the Davao City Council has finally picked up an idea worth converting into an ordinance.
We are referring to our earlier recommendation for any member of the local legislative body to introduce a proposed measure where the city government can give assistance to families with a loved one who has passed away.
It is a known fact that families who belong to the marginalized sector will doubly be hard-up in having a decent wake and burial of their dead. Even those who join mortuary associations are sometimes hassled by the expenses during the embalming of the body, on the nights of the novena, and finally in burying the cadaver.
In the efforts of the family members to solve this kind of problem, they have to seek assistance from politicians, more specifically, the barangay captains and the councilors of their district. After all, they are those easier to access than either the City Mayor or their congressman.
But we were told by some of those who sought assistance from the mentioned politicians of their sad experiences in reaching the said officials. They swear by their frustration of being rejected or given a run-around. And if they get something, usually the amount is a pittance or the assistance is in terms of vehicle services or flowers for the dead, with the politician’s name emblazoned thereon.
So, during the past months, we had been advocating that the giving of assistance, financial or otherwise, to families whose member or loved one has gone to the great beyond, be institutionalized through an ordinance, and all the schemes for availing of the support be clearly laid out for strict compliance.
And yes, at long last, 2nd District Councilor Ralph Abella, husband of former councilor and beauty queen Marissa Abella, came out blazing with his proposal. For this noble intention, we extend our hand to Councilor Ralph, even as we hope his proposed measure will bloom into a full-blown ordinance.
“It is a good thing that the 20% tax will only apply to deposits and investments made starting July 1, 2025, and does not cover deposits and investments made earlier.”
However, if we have our way, we would have gotten rid of any provision in the proposed local legislation that ties the councilors to the program. In his proposal, Councilor Ralph wants that a portion of the budget allocated to each councilor be utilized for burial assistance purposes.
Our take on the scheme is that it becomes self-limiting. It is also likely to create in the minds of the beneficiary families that they owe a debt of gratitude to the councilor from whom they got the aid.
Our recommendation is for the City Council to create a budgetary item in the city’s annual appropriation where the funds for burial assistance are drawn. The implementing rules and regulations (IRR) that govern the release of the aid must be clearly defined, and compliance strictly demanded.
In doing such, the death assistance will become fully that of the city government and not just be attributed to any member of the City Council. We believe that it is more than enough payment of a “debt of gratitude” to the local lawmaking body, the recognition the people of the city will accord not just to the author but to the entire City Council.
But again, this recommendation of ours is basically a way of letting Councilor Abella know the sad experiences of Davaoenos who have approached certain Councilors and officials of the executive department to beg for assistance during their hour of bereavement.
Councilor Ralph may or may not consider our thoughts on his proposed burial assistance in the city.
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So, Republic Act No.12214, or the Capital Markets Efficiency Promotion Act, has now been implemented by a number of banks in the country? The Act mandates a 20% tax on earnings from savings and investment instruments regardless of annual interest rates, which as of shortly before the effectivity of the law, was only averaging at 6 percent.
Wow! Twenty percent (20%) is, by all means, huge. Anyone depositing in a bank or investing in any financial instruments can only imagine how big the amount that will be chipped off from the interests of their savings and investments when they withdraw it by the time it matures or when certain situations demand its withdrawal or termination.
It is a good thing that the 20% tax will only apply to deposits and investments made starting July 1, 2025, and does not cover deposits and investments made earlier.
In due time, we will know how this new tax will affect the decisions of the moneyed on what option they will take in growing their financial resources.
