I think I was on my way to a meeting—this was a while ago—when I happened to pass by a new sari-sari store being coated with fresh blue paint and bearing the logo of a popular soft-drink maker. Through the open door, I could see a couple of women arranging canned goods with the kind of careful pride that tells you this isn't just a business—it's their family's future.

I suddenly remembered this after reading a Manila Bulletin article citing a report by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) that there was a 12 percent increase in business name registrations from January to May this year compared with 2025, driven by robust demand among entrepreneurs venturing into wholesale and retail trade. Specifically, the DTI’s business name registration system (BNRS) noted that more than 84 percent, or 525,397, of the applications by the end of May were new registrations, while the remaining 97,309 were renewals.

In May alone, 70,750 Filipinos filed new business registrations. That's nearly 71,000 new dreams launched in just one month, even with all the economic instability from the Middle East conflict. I am not sure if that sari-sari store I saw was part of this wave, but of the new registrants in May the DTI said 12,953 of them were sari-sari stores. They are brave entrepreneurs, or perhaps we can call them “kanto capitalists.”

Let that number sink in: twelve thousand nine hundred and fifty-three corner stores. That's twelve thousand nine hundred and fifty-three mothers, fathers, siblings, and neighbors who said to themselves, “I’m going to be my own boss and I’m not waiting for someone to give me the opportunity. I'm creating it.” It is a decision made by millions of other entrepreneurs. I made that fateful decision that changed my life in 1975.

These are micro and small enterprises: businesses operating right where we live—in our neighborhoods, serving our neighbors, paying their bills one instant pancit canton and one canned sardines at a time. These aren't corporate giants. These are the people who employ two or three of your cousins. They're the ones who give you a discount when you're short on cash. They're the backbone of our economy, employing 63 percent of Filipinos and contributing nearly 40 percent of our GDP. And yet they are the ones most likely to be crushed by a bad month, a broken roof, or government red tape and a tax system that squeeze the life out of their enterprises.

I know people want to talk about controversial issues. We like our politics like we like our movies: the battle of the “bida” and “kontrabida”. But we need our policymakers to do their jobs and help the actual “bida” of our economy—the micro and small entrepreneurs. Instead of scandals, word wars, and ad hominem attacks, why can’t we focus our creative energies and political will on passing legislation that will put a reasonable cap on local taxes? I know local governments need resources, but imagine how a decrease in local taxes could unleash the full economic potential of Filipino entrepreneurs.

Better yet, maybe we can provide micro entrepreneurs with tax exemptions for two or three years after their initial filing, or perhaps a five percent tax rate instead of eight percent. I know our economic managers might say this would deprive our coffers of resources, but these are resources that will actually benefit not just business owners but entire livelihoods and help create an entrepreneurial revolution in our communities. And can we please simplify the filing system? Stop making entrepreneurship require an accounting degree. Let them file annually instead of every quarter. I remember when I first started my gravel-and-sand business in 1975, I had to really focus on the accounting aspect of my business. Even with my master’s degree, I found it difficult and cumbersome.

I do not mean to belittle the other important issues our country is facing, but for me the only war worth fighting for is the war against poverty. And I sincerely believe—as I did when I entered politics in 1992—that only by harnessing an army of entrepreneurs, an infantry of “kanto capitalists,” can we claim victory. People like to talk about the 2028 elections even if it’s just 2026. Fine. But let’s talk about the elections in terms of what can be done to make entrepreneurship—specifically micro and small entrepreneurs—the centerpiece of our campaign to achieve prosperity for all.

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