Ben Tulfo to Cebu biz leaders: Be a teacher to MSMEs

Broadcaster Ben Tulfo (5th from left) with CCCI officials led by its President Jay Yuvallos (4th from right). | Contributed photo

CEBU CITY, Philippines – Veteran broadcaster Ben Tulfo urged businesses here to share their expertise to Small and Medium Enterprises and nano entrepreneurs to help them achieve success.

Tulfo, an MSME advocate, said that small businesses are struggling to survive in a changing business landscape.

“I would like to engage in a conversation with you, to hear from you on the ease of doing business. The nano, the micro, the small businesses, there’s a lot of people who would be interested in starting this part of it,” he said during a meeting with officials of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) on Wednesday, October 2.

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Tulfo, who earlier announced his senate bid, was in Cebu for a dialogue with Chamber officers and local business leaders.

“I’m pitching something. I just pitched something. What do you want us to do? And then I just wanted to pitch that maybe you can take care of those people who are weak. So we stand for the weak, and those faceless and voiceless do the same thing. The faceless and the voiceless- the often unheard. That’s why you need to expand and be visible for them to succeed. You become the teacher,” he said.

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Empower MSMEs

Meanwhile, Tulfo lauded CCCI for its initiatives to bolster Cebu’s business environment by collaborating and helping empower MSMEs.

In addition, he urged local business leaders to utilize the different social media platforms as they continue to give exposure to small businesses.

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During their meeting, local business leaders mentioned of the need for government support in promoting innovation, simplifying tax processes, and speeding up public services.

They also mentioned of the need to further improve Republic Act 11032 that promotes ease in doing business and the efficient delivery of government services.

Business leaders said that there was also a need for local government units to streamline business processes and transition to digital or online tax operations.

In addition, Chamber officials underscored the importance of the Anti-Red Tape Act of 2007 in improving the delivery public services and in mitigating corruption within the business landscape.

Common goal

CCCI president Jay Yuvallos has reaffirmed the Chamber’s commitment to collaborate with the government and other stakeholders to achieve common goals and to ensure a prosperous business community here.   

“It’s important because we believe in the right enabling environment as far as policies and government policies are concerned. In fact, we have a division for that now. We really want to be proactive in this area in our policy advocacy,” he said.

Also, Yuvallos said that CCCI is always open to dialogue with political leaders while they maintain their neutrality.

“We are talking about alignment. We are talking about the vision of the Chamber, the bigger business climate, and competitiveness. He (Ben Tulfo) was talking about the competitiveness of the Philippines. It’s coincidental, but it’s history. So we want ideas and thoughts like this to come out. So if these national leaders will come to us and talk to us, it’s a very welcome idea,” he said.