Elinando B. Cinco       Nowadays, when money is hard to come by, it’s nice to know there are companies who will go out of their way to help Filipinos overcome their financial problems, starting with a few small steps. Widely known for its pawnshop business, Cebuana Lhuillier is getting more recognized now for advocating financial independence, especially among lower-income communities, through promoting a micro-savings product of Cebuana Lhuillier Rural Bank. Through more than 500 “iponaryo” sessions, around 80,000 employees in more than 2,500 Cebuana Lhuillier outlets go to various barangays, schools, non-government organizations, and local government units nationwide — to teach Filipinos how to manage their everyday spending, save even the smallest amount of money, keep it safe and secure, and grow it further. The financial wellness program aims to help millions of unbanked Filipinos become financially capable by encouraging them to save money and opening a micro-savings account, one that can help them achieve their financial goals. To start their journey towards financial independence, they just have to go to any Cebuana Lhuillier branch, and open a micro-savings account by submitting one valid ID and ₱50 initial deposit. * * * NEXT TIME GIVE IT TO THE PROS. The embarrassing snafus and blunders that beset the start of the SEA Games last week only goes to show that the government erred by not entrusting the organizing and management of the regional sports event to professional groups, rather than to politicians. Any country in the world hosting sporting events, including the Winter Olympics and the quadrennial (once-every-four-years) Olympiad itself are all managed by experienced professional firms. They are staffed by professionals and especially trained managers who have excellent track records in the organization and management of uniquely sports-embedded international tournaments such as the SEA Games. Any tyro in the nature and idiosyncrasies of the event, any inexperienced wet-behind-the-ear gook, placed by the government in the organizing group, will surely mess up the entire organization. Regional tournaments such as the SEA Games are known for their diversity of the needs and requirements of athletes, and even those of the coaches and officials. Participants and trainers of each sports category are not the same. Any hosting country must build facilities of international standards, finished a month before the opening night. Official umpires and referees, sanctioned by the regional committee, well in advance, must already be in place. And those managers in the professional management groupings know in advance each of these, sometimes capricious, requirements. The resulting audit would show that the two-week-long sports skirmishes, including the lodging and the food, communication system, media coverage, secretarial needs, transport facilities are above par. And at the end of the day, these professional groups will show the government of the hosting country that the fortnight extravaganza made money at the gates and thru sponsorship too. * * * (The writer was awarded One of the Distinguished Journalism Alumni by the University of Santo Tomas last November 29, 2019.)