Igorot Veterans die after applying for US Lump Sum

Inquirer reports that several Igorot war veterans have died after applying for the $9,000 lump sum benefit that the US government has granted Filipinos who fought alongside American soldiers during the war. Records from PVAO Cordillera showed that the following war veterans have since died after filing their claims: Leon Wacay, Balosdan Alcido, Gabriel Fabian, Francisco Agmalew, Maximo Lagiman, Ponciano Lawaguey, Martin Liampo and Perez Dinangwatan, all of Benguet; Mauro Bambico and Tranquilino Andres, of Baguio City; and Emilio Nacatab of Tadian, Mountain Province. Apparently, only the surviving spouses of these veterans could claim the money. The benefit would not be given to the veterans' children because the law specifies that only the surviving spouses could claim it on behalf of the veterans. What happens if there is no surviving spouse? $9,000 is roughly P450,000 - still a huge amount. Surely, after the very long wait, the children of these veterans deserve the benefit their parents risked their lives for. Read the full story.

2 comments:

Jimmy April 4, 2009 at 9:02 AM: $9000 is a very small sum that the US government is paying for the efforts the veterans did. I didn't know only living spouses can take advantage of that. That's stupid and mean.
Daniel April 5, 2009 at 3:24 AM: While they are at it, they should also allow dependents of deceased veterans to claim compensation. What difference if a veteran died on 2008 or 2009? They still shared the same risk in helping the Americans and should be compensated the same.