CITY OF MALOLOS, Bulacan — First District Congressman Jose Antonio Sy-Alvarado on Thursday said he would file a bill pushing to make the province of Bulacan the country’s “Cooperative Capital”.
Sy-Alvarado made the announcement during the celebration of “Buwan ng Kooperatiba at Pangangalakal 2017” at the Capitol gymnasium here Thursday morning.
“The successful cooperative movement started in our great province, thus it is only fitting that Bulacan should be known as the coop capital of the Philippines,” Sy-Alvarado told cooperative members here.
Earlier, Gov. Wilhelmino Sy-Alvarado said a number of cooperatives in Bulacan continues to grow big and strong and has been a vital part in boosting the national economy.
The governor said cooperatives help small medium scale enterprises grow and 97 percent of SMEs are from Bulacan.
“There are now at least 395 active cooperatives in Bulacan and they are helping big in uplifting the lives of many Bulakenyos. Therefore, it is about time that the province of Bulacan should appropriately be descri
bed as the coop capital of the country” the governor said, noting that cooperatives are the backbone of growth and development in the countryside.
Vice Gov. Daniel Fernando said the Sangguniang Panlalawigan will support Sy-Alvarado’s move by passing a provincial resolution to make Bulacan the “coop capital” of the country.
“It cannot be denied that cooperatives came from Bulacan and it has become the engines of growth in the different villages in the province’s 21 towns and 3 cities, especially in rural communities,” Fernando said.
Senator Cynthia Villar, the event’s guest of honor and speaker, sent her message through her chief of staff lawyer Regie Tabana.
Tabana said Villar is very supportive of the cooperative movement especially in the agricultural sector, being the chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Foods.
Tabana said Senator Villar is focusing on boosting the growth and development of the agri-sector because it will create livelihoods and jobs and eradicate poverty. She said that Villar is a staunch advocate of eradicating poverty by empowering SMEs.
She added that 99 percent of businesses in the country are composed of SMEs and most of them are in the agriculture and food business that create jobs and livelihood opportunities for people in the rural areas.(PNA)
