Two party-list legislators on Friday urged the Department of Health, the Department of Interior and Local Government and the National Council on Disability Affairs to review the implementation of Republic Act 10754 or the Act Expanding the Benefits and Privileges of Persons with Disability and initiate a crackdown against the proliferation of PWD impersonators.
Reps. Ronnie Ong of the Ang Probinsyano and Eric Yap of ACT-CIS said that much of the country’s business sector are barely surviving because of the corona pandemic and the unauthorized use of the PWD cards to get discounts as required by RA10754 is making life even harder for them.
Under the law, PWDs are given an automatic 20% direct discount and are VAT exempt on purchases of certain goods and services from all establishments for their exclusive use, among many other privileges.
Ong said that while he supports the objective of RA 10754, it has become apparent that it is being abused by people faking disability to avail of discounts and privileges provided for PWDs. This is causing huge financial losses not only to many business establishments but to the government as well.
Ong said that the law has a very little safeguard against impersonating a PWD and there is not even a uniform specification on the proof of entitlement which makes it very easy for people to make fake PWD identification cards.