i often wonder why do some people stay on the streets? why can't they clean themselves? why can't they get a job, so they don't have to beg or ask for alms? how do these people feel? where do they sleep? what do they eat? do they get sick? if something happens to them, what do they do? where do they go?
i feel so sad whenever i see them. 'coz i can't do more. more than giving some coins or small bills and sometimes food.
i know it's crazy, but i'm a dreamer. and one of my dreams is of me helping those people get some work, take a bath, wear clean clothes, get a permanent shelter, go to school, eat newly cooked meals, live on their own...
i sometimes see pregnant women, kids cuddling babies, disabled or people with deformities asking or begging on the streets. when the traffic lights stop vehicles, they go from one jeepney to a car to a truck begging, asking.
how can they survive?
to land a decent job in the city, you have to secure your birth certificate (sometimes an NSO certified birth certificate is required) clearances from the barangay, police, NBI, numbers from SSS, and your high school diploma or your transcript of records. you can avail of these things easily if you can validate your existence (birth certificate, clearances...). not to mention that college graduates diminish your hopes of landing a job even for customer service related jobs such as sales clerks, cashiers, even for security personnel positions.
no wonder crime statistics fluctuate more often than your electric bills...
i heard that some of them like the Badjao's (yes, the sea faring people) do beg because of necessity. but some does because they are forced to do so.
and yet here's the real ISSUE of all! -- the DSWD project of giving up to Php 1, 500.00 monthly stipend (thru the beneficiaries' Landbank atm cards) to "poor" families.
i have very strong emotions against that DSWD project!
it's not that i don't want these people to receive help, but my socks! the DSWD is encouraging those people to get lazy...to just wait until the next stipend can be withdrawn thru their atm cards!
