5-6 BY INDIANS IN THE PHILIPPINES: GOOD FOR INDIANS....BAD FOR FILIPINOS

He's Indian, one of the ''bosses'' here in the Philippines. He's doing the 5-6 lending business.

 

 They are Filipino vendors in Caloocan, only in Caloocan City. Philippines has too many vendors all over its places: remote, urban, or metropolitan.

These vendors get or ask money from Indians to finance their small vending businesses. For every 5 peso borrowed by a Filipino vendor, 6 peso is being returned. So if 100PHP is borrowed by a Filipino vendor, it will be returned at 120PHP; for 1000PHP borrowed finances, 1200PHP is to be returned; for 2000PHP, 2,400PHP must be returned, and so on and so forth.

This is how Mari Kondo defines 5-6:

''Five-Six Moneylenders. So-called because of the manner in which they lend, five-six (5-6) moneylenders charge a nominal interest rate of 20 percent over an agreed period of time. A person who borrows 5 pesos from a 5-6 moneylender over a period of one week repays 6 pesos, including 1 peso interest. Neither Filipino nor Indian 5-6 moneylenders require collateral or documents from their borrowers. The success of a borrower’s business and loan repayment history provide a gauge of the borrower’s credibility.''

To know more about 5-6, please click the link below.

http://kyotoreview.cseas.kyoto-u.ac.jp/issue/issue3/article_298.html 

 This article says that 5-6 helps to develop the mirco-enterprises in the Philippines.

This is how wikipedia defines what micro-enterprise is...........

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Micro-enterprise 

''A micro-enterprise (or microenterprise) is a type of small business, often registered, having five or fewer employees and requiring seed capital of not more than $35,000. ''

Street vendors in the Philippines aren't registered. They usually sell their products on cart or wagon.

 These vendors need to sell something on the streets in order to survive, to feed their families, to provide a living, and to give education to their children, IF they earn much in a day. They live on the streets, sleep on the sidewalks, and make money on the streets. They earn just a little from their goods. But they still have to pay the Indians within a certain period of time.

In my point of view, the Filipino vendors must not ask seed capital from the Indians.  They must save, so they can have their own seed capital. Filipinos don't realize the worst consequence that occurs whenever they borrow and borrow seed capital from the Indians or Filipino creditors. So what happens is even if they pay 6 pesos for every 5 pesos, or even if they pay their whole debt or 5-6 loan, a Filipino vendor still needs to borrow from that Indian again the next time she needs a seed capital. So history just repeats itself. Definitely, Filipinos won't get rich, or won't be able to get much through 5-6 financing. Filipinos  just bury themselves slowly in their own pit.

2010: A DISASTROUS YEAR

I don't know if you are going to agree with me. But in my own perception and observations, 2010 has been a disatrous year not only in my life but in the lives of the peoples around the world. Haiti earthquake was one of the fatal events that brought at least 230,000 death toll, and 300,000 people injured. It was January 12th, at 04:53:10 PM when this fatal natural disaster occured. And since Philippines is 13 hours ahead of Haiti, it was already January 13th, 2010, 05: 53: 10AM that time here in my country.

Other global catastrophic events happened in Turkey (6 magnitude earthquake), and Chile (earthquake). China, and Washington DC had both snowstorms.

To think that my birthday is on January 11th, I wouldn't want to conclude that my birthday wishes were not granted by GOD. Every day and every time I celebrate my natal day, I always pray for the human race. For I know that I am not the only one who needs the guidance and assistance of the Lord ALmighty. For I know that I am not the only one who was created by GOD, and every creature needs the love and care of our Almighty Father.

Tragedy also came into my life unexpectedly when my brother, Bern, was brought to St. Luke's Medical Centre here in the Philippines by his traitor friend due to a severe stomach pain. He was brought to the hospital on the 9th of August, maybe, at 10 in the evening. I went to him the following day which was the 10th of August. Then watched over him until he was brought to the endoscopy room to insert that fatal thing inside his body. According to the doctors, endoscopy was performed to determine whether the gallbladder of my brother had stones. But when the examination was over, doctors told me that my brother needed to undergo the operation because the stones in his gallbladder were not seen during the endoscopic procedure.

I was hesitant to let the doctors do the surgery. There were arguments among the doctors, medical staff, and me. Until I gave in to what they wanted to do because of the color of my brother. He had jaundice. Thinking that he would have pains because of his liver, I thought that his liver was already affected because of the explanations of the doctors. And knowing my brother Bern's nature, he couldn't bear any pains; unlike me, I can bear any pains I have in my body due to the congenital heart disease and severe kidney failure, but my brother couldn't; so, I decided to let him undergo the operation. It was August 11th when I went back to my own training centre to hold online classes with my Chinese students for I wasn't able to inform them of what was happening into my life during that time. But I was not done yet with my online classes when doctors called me. Even my niece, Yen, talked to me over the phone telling me to go to the hospital right away because my brother, Bern, needed me. It was already August 12th, at 12 midnight when I reached the hospital by a taxi. I needed to prepare my toga first and other personal things I needed to perform that day, August 12th, Thursday, as a choir member in our church, the Church of Christ. But when I saw my brother, he was already very cold. He looked like he had been dead for long hours.

I couldn't control my emotions. I flared up. I shouted at the doctor who performed the operation, and the staff asking them to let all my family members get inside the operating room to revive my brother, Bern. I was like a mentally retarded person. Still hoping that I could revive my brother by touching his cold body and by talking to him, telling him to come back for me and for the whole family. But he was totally gone on August 12th, 2010. I couldn't believe that only 2 days ago we just talked together, joked togeter, argued together while he was waiting for the time for his endoscopy. I just went back home to change my outfit, but when I went back to the hospital, he was lifeless. The following day was August 13th, my brother's 44th birthday. And he celebrated it inside his white coffin.

This year, 2010, is the most devastating year of my life. I want this to end as soon as possible. I want this year to disappear so all my pains and heartaches will also disappear. Or shall I say, my pains and heartaches will always remain in my heart and mind for another 2010 years for I love my brother, Bern, so much. He's the only one, the only person who understood that I am A SPECIAL WOMAN, that means I was a SPECIAL CHILD.