NEDA 64 pesos per day / 9,581 Php per month issue

Let me get this straight: NEDA thinks a family of five can survive on P9,581 a month?

That's like saying a cat can survive on a diet of air and Facebook likes.

It's almost as if they’re expecting us to pull out our Monopoly money and start making a living off “Free Parking” and “Community Chest” cards.

What’s next? Are we going to start paying for our groceries with exposure, good vibes, and a nod of "pasasalamat" to the cashier?

Let’s break it down, shall we? According to NEDA, that P9,581 is supposed to cover everything—food, shelter, clothing, transportation, education, healthcare, and, I don’t know, maybe a unicorn ride to work? They’re saying that each person can live on P64 a day. That’s less than the price of a decent cup of coffee, and I’m talking about the kind where the barista just scowls at you and slaps your name on a paper cup.

Lets take a look at it one by one:

Food: Let’s say you’re sticking to the basics—rice, sardines, and maybe a couple of vegetables if you’re feeling fancy. Even if you stretch your pesos to the absolute limit, you’re looking at more than P64 per day, per person. Forget about meat, fruit, or anything that doesn’t come in a can or a sachet. But hey, who needs protein, right? We can all just photosynthesize.

Shelter: What kind of shelter are we talking about here? A tent? A cardboard box? Because unless you’re living in the Sims where walls and roofs are optional, I’m pretty sure rent, utilities, and the occasional need for repairs cost more than NEDA’s magical P9,581.

Clothing: I guess everyone’s dressing from the “Family Hand-Me-Downs 2024 Collection” this season. That or we’re all shopping at the “I Hope This Fits” thrift store. But hey, maybe NEDA’s onto something—who needs new clothes when you can just wear your old ones inside out for that fresh, “new” look?

Transportation: Ah yes, public transportation—the daily game of “How many people can we fit into this jeepney before it turns into a clown car?” With skyrocketing fuel prices and public fares to match, P64 a day isn’t going to get you very far. Maybe NEDA’s plan is for us to all become Olympic-level marathon runners?

Education and Healthcare: Maybe NEDA’s secretly hoping for some sort of Jedi mind trick where we just will ourselves into being educated and healthy. Who needs schools or hospitals when you’ve got, I don’t know, Google and YouTube tutorials?

NEDA’s estimate is so out of touch it might as well be a plotline in a sitcom—oh wait, this is reality. It’s like they’re trying to outdo themselves in the “Who Can Be the Most Detached from Reality” competition. If this is their idea of a livable budget, then clearly, they’ve been spending too much time in their air-conditioned offices, sipping on their overpriced coffee, and not enough time in the real world.

So, NEDA, if P9,581 a month is all we need, I’m going to need you to prove it. Live on that amount for just one month. No cheating, no allowances, no secret funds. Just you, P9,581, and the cold, hard reality you’ve so conveniently ignored. Let’s see if you can make it work because the rest of us certainly can’t.

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