Sari-saring Pag-asa, former House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano’s signature cash aid program for small businesses, has reached nearly 6,400 beneficiaries across the country as hundreds of sari-sari store owners received aid on Tuesday.
Around 200 small business owners from Quezon City and Padre Burgos town in Quezon province received P3,500 each in cash aid through the program on its 37th episode which aired November 23, 2021 over former House Speaker Cayetano’s Facebook page.
This brings the total number of Sari-saring Pag-asa beneficiaries to 6,387 nationwide.
Among those present in Tuesday’s livestream event were former House Speaker Cayetano, ANAKALUSUGAN Partylist Rep. Mike Defensor, as well as local officials from Quezon City and Padre Burgos, Quezon province.
Featured during the November 23 show was sari-sari store owner Fathy Mae Macaganda of Bangui, Ilocos Norte who received P3,500 in cash aid on November 8, 2021.
“Naging malaking tulong ito sa pamumuhay namin sa pang-araw-araw namin dahil ito ang bale sumalba sa buhay namin,” Macaganda said.
(The sari sari store has been a great help in our daily lives because it is what saves our lives.)
Her sari-sari store has been a big help for her everyday expenses such as her children’s tuition, food and bills such as electricity and load.
Through Sari-Saring Pag-asa, Tabangcora was able to increase her earnings by restocking her sari-sari store with more goods. She prioritized oil, eggs, coffee sachets, noodles, canned goods, and other essentials that are in demand items.
Tabangcora said she makes sure to use her earnings responsibly, and always sets aside for necessary expenses.
The Sari-saring Pag-asa program’s mantra is encapsulated in four action points for sari-sari store owners: Budget, Engganyo, Save, and Tiyaga or BEST. It offers a template budget plan for beneficiaries so they can use their cash aid to improve their small businesses and secure their daily needs.
The initiative is an extension of Cayetano and his allies’ lobbying efforts for greater state economic aid for Filipinos, as he has been advocating for a broad-based economic stimulus program to help the country recover from its deepest recession since World War 2.
At the core of his proposal is the 10K Ayuda Bill, which when passed will mandate direct stimulus payouts of at least P10,000 to every Filipino family to help them with immediate household needs and restart their businesses.
