Recovering in any type of incident was never easy — recalled Mr. Eduardo Ricardo, a victim of a fire incident which affected his livelihood, a goat farm. With a total of seventy (70) goats, the whole flock was engulfed in a fire and none survived.
Ricardo, 50 years of age, was a beneficiary of the Pangkabuhayan sa Pagbangon at Ginhawa program of the Department of Trade and Industry. He was a farmer of rice and corn at Cagayan Valley who travelled all the way to Laguna to take care of his siblings’ property and is now a resident of Brgy. Entablado, Rizal, Laguna.
The fire incident that happened in 2023 took over their source of income, leaving them with nothing to start over. However, with the help of local government offices including the Laguna Provincial Office of the Department of Trade and Industry and other agencies, he acquired funds and materials to start his small business: R WILDCAT FRUITS AND VEGETABLE TRADING.
Currently, aside from his small business, he has his own “bukohan” located in Marikina and is also a dealer of fruits and vegetable which he imports from his siblings’ properties. As of today, he is still recovering from what had happened last year, trying to bring back what he had lost. Aside from the funds and materials that he received, he also earned a livestock, specifically cattle, from the Department of Agriculture which allowed him to relive their farm and have some helpers from managing the animals. From his experience, it is really hard to think of something to get back-up. “Mahirap pag ‘yun nalang ang iisipin mo [insidente], kaya ipinagpasa Diyos nalamang… Maiistress ka lang pag inisip mo lang [ang problema]. Hindi na maibabalik ang nawala,” he said.
Ricardo is now actively participating in different programs provided by different government agencies. He is also a member of the Department of Labor and Employment’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers. He also attends seminars with regard to handling finances, starting up a business or job offer programs. While attending these seminars, he learned and took a lot of lessons in his life in order for him to have a continuous business and right financial management. He is also now planning to have his own product and is now in contact in the local agriculture agency which (according to him) will provide a crop as his start.
As a man who did not lose hope in the midst of chaos created by unanticipated dilemma, he left a message for people who might have experience the same thing and is starting anew.
“Ang paghawak ng pera ay may nakalaan yung pang gastos mo [sa] pang araw-araw. Huwag mong gamitin yung kaunting kapital mo para hindi mawala yung hanapbuhay mo. Hindi kailangang iwaldas mo iyong kaunting puhunan.” ♦
Date of release: 21 June 2024
