Cayetano calls for P8-B budget for regions
P500-M PER REGION
AFTER completing the first phase of his listening tour that included Dagupan City, Senator Alan Cayetano is now proposing an P8 billion allocation from the government budget to address the country’s problems of “mataas na presyo, kawalan ng trabaho, at kakulangan ng kita.”
Cayetano presented his PTK (Presyo, Trabaho, Kita) platform to address poverty at a grand launch in Taguig City last week before a crowd consisting of the youth, senior citizens, women, blue-collar workers and the unemployed.
Under his platform, the senator suggested another level for the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program where the government would allocate P500 million to each region in the country to support existing Small and Medium Enterprises and help establish new ones.
“No province should be left behind. All families should feel the effects of the 6.6 percent GDP growth at the same time. We have to increase SME owners’ access to capital to spare these business owners from the clutches of 5-6 operators who charge with steep interest rates,” he said.
He said such a program would not only help sustain the viability of the country’s industries but also strengthen existing cooperatives, as well as establish new ones.
“I believe in the saying ‘Give a man fish and he will eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.’ By empowering small businessmen, the government will also empower Filipino families to earn a living through their own successful efforts,” he said.
Cayetano said his listening tour in Dagupan City validated his own findings in other cities that the continued lack of access to capital by small entrepreneurs prevents the latter from earning enough for their families.
“Gagamitin ko ang mga solusyon ninyo dahil kahit na alam ko ang mga problema ninyo, mas alam ninyo ang mga problema ninyo at ang angkop na solusyon dito,” he said.
The CCT program is a poverty reduction strategy that provides cash grants to the poorest households to allow the members of the families to meet specific human development goals.
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