Filipinos are known for their preference for rice as their staple food. Among the various energy-giving food, rice is the common choice that could best satisfy a hungry stomach. Workers who has no income or barely have earning for one’s daily needs, rice is the basic food that could be eaten even without viand. It restores ones energy after toiling, especially if one works under the heat of the sun or warm workplaces.

Unfortunately, the poor worker does not earn enough to feed oneself and the family that depends for support. Indeed, people are suffer so much due to the lowly income that is inadequate to buy even the cheapest rice which is usually of low quality. Amid the skyrocketing prices of rice are the continually increasing prices of basic goods and services. The prices of basic goods such as meat, fish, cooking oil, fuel and above all, sugar.

As if the hardship of the poor is not enough, farm products like onions, crops and vegetables also rose several times over than the usual regular prices. What is appalling is the fact that these farm products were being bought by unscrupulous capitalist traders at very cheap farm-gate prices. The poor and hapless farm workers have no choice but to sell their products at low prices that the capitalist traders impose because the farmers have no adequate storage facilities and equipment to preserve their products.

In many instances, farmers who produce huge harvest during peak seasons are forced to sell their products at low prices than loss everything if the products will rot in so short a period. It is unconscionably unthinkable that the farmers who produce these farm products could not even afford to buy the same products that are already sold expensively in markets under the control of capitalist traders. After being forced by their helpless situation to sell their products at prices dictated by capitalist traders, they now suffer from the high prices set by the same capitalist traders.

The anomalous and irregular situation had been exposed and subjected to congressional investigations. But like all investigations conducted purportedly in aid of legislation, no concrete solution had been reached. The investigations become a venue for grandstanding by lawmakers who put media millage in aid of re-election. So much taxpayer’s money is wasted for such exercises that end in mere brouhaha. After the show is over, the poor remain in the quagmire of poverty and suffer the escalating prices of farm products, mainly the basic staple food that is rice.
comments to alellema@yahoo.com

The Philippines was not the only country that suffered unbearable economic challenges caused by COVID-19 pandemic. The devastations caused to the world by the pandemia was felt badly in all sectors of the country, e.g. business, infrastructures, human lives etc., but the shock was on the men and women working in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

The Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) that felt the financial woes of the MSMEs has though of providing solutions to these enterprises by advising that they “tap he capital market, including crowdfunding platforms, to raise funds for business recovery and expansion.

Crowdfunding is defined as a type of fundraising activity typically conducted by start-ups and SMES where the public can support or fund a business idea through an online platform.
In the Philippines, crowdfunding rules dictate that “SMES no longer have to register securities with or secure approval directly from the SEC before they can solicit investments from the public.

“Furthermore, SMES need only to conduct their fundraising activity with a crowd funding intermediary, funding portal or crowdfunding platform registered with SEC.” Also, within a 12 month period, an SME may raise as much as P 10 million when its securities are offered and sold to any investor, and up toP50 million when offered, and sold to qualified investors.”

MY COMMENT:
The strategy of SEC to resuscitate the financially crippled MSMEs caused by the pandemia, is well appreciated and timely. SEC will to put more teeth to their project by doing intensive information/education dissemination throughout the country. The roadshow on capita market formation conducted in Davao City need to be replicated for the benefit of the less ‘educated’ entrepreneurs in towns and provinces. And hopefully, the strategy would create a domino-effect among interested parties. Definitely, crowdfunding type of fundraising is Latin to me! It would appreciated if the same is ‘dissected’!
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THE gospel reading of the 2nd Sunday of Easter which is also called the Divine Mercy Sunday (cfr. Jn 20,19-31) can very well tell us about what Easter life is all about, what life after Christ’s resurrection is all about insofar as we are concerned.

The gospel starts by telling us about Christ’s appearance to his stunned disciples, showing them his hands and his side to convince them that he really was Christ. Then he told them that they had the same mission that Christ had. “As the Father has sent me, I also send you,” he said. Then he breathed on them the Holy Spirit such that whose sins they forgive, they are forgiven, and whose sins they retain, they are retained.

Then by some twist of fate, Thomas, one of the disciples, was not around at that time. And when told about Christ’s appearance to them, he did not believe. “Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the place of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe,” he said.

Thus, 8 days later, Christ again appeared to them, this time with Thomas around. He called Thomas, showed him his hands and side, and that was only then that Thomas believed, saying, “My Lord and my God!” From a doubting Thomas, he became an intensely believing Thomas.

All these details of the gospel tell us that living the Easter life means that we should realize ever deeply and abidingly that we have the same mission as Christ, pursuing it in different ways and in accord to one’s status in the world and in the Church. We have to continue the work of redemption whether we are clerics, religious or laypeople.

In this regard, it is important that our faith is always strong and deep, and that we show that faith always in deeds, since that would convert that faith into real charity which is what we ultimately should achieve. In other words, we need to be strong in faith and active in good works, doing all sorts of apostolate wherever we are.

Easter life, in effect, is life in the Holy Spirit. We have to always strengthen this awareness about our life that would make us always feel that we are never alone, since God in the Holy Spirit is always with us.

We have to feel very much at home with this very wonderful reality and start to correspond to it as we ought. We have to go beyond our earthly dimensions and enter into the more fascinating world of the spiritual and the supernatural.

This does not mean that we escape from our earthly reality to be in the spiritual and supernatural reality. No. It means that while deeply immersed in our mundane conditions, we also have to learn to go beyond them to be with God. This is what the word ‘transcendence’ means.

To be sure, we are enabled to do that, because of our intelligence and will. These are powerful faculties that would enable us to know and to love, and eventually to enter in the lives of others and ultimately to be with God. But more than that, we are given God’s grace that would enable us to enter and to share God’s supernatural life and nature.
This is what Easter life is all about!