A CONGRESSMAN has urged the Senate to act swiftly on a House-approved bill that aims to encourage the growth of micro-entrepreneurs by providing them easy access to capital through low-interest, no-collateral loans.
Rep. Brian Raymund Yamsuan of the Bicol Saro party-list group said HB 7363 which seeks to institutionalize the government’s Pondo Para sa Pagbabago at Pag-Asenso (P3) Program, would also free micro-entrepreneurs, such as market vendors and sari-sari store owners, from the clutches of predatory “five-six” scheme of loan sharks.
“Small businesses with enough profits and opportunities to expand: this is what we envision in pushing for the swift passage of the bill institutionalizing the government’s Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (Funds for Change and Development) or P3 Program,” said Yamsuan, who recently filed his candidacy to run as representative of Parañaque’s 2nd District in the 2025 midterm elections.
Besides providing low-interest, no-collateral loans, the P3 Program also aims to shield micro- entrepreneurs from the usurious lending practices of “five-six” moneylenders, Yamsuan said.
The so-called five-six is a practice of usurious moneylenders who charge 20 percent monthly interest on borrowers mostly composed of marginalized households and operators of micro businesses..
Yamsuan said institutionalizing the P3, which would ensure that this micro -financing program would remain sustainable over the long term, is aligned with his political platform called HOPE which stands for Health, Opportunities, Peace, and Education.
Yamsuan explained his political agenda as providing quality and affordable health and medical care; adequate jobs and livelihood opportunities to elevate the people’s living standards, assurance of peace and safety in their communities; and guaranteeing access to quality education.
Yamsuan is among the principal authors of House Bill (HB) 7363 or the proposed P3 Act, which was already approved by the House of Representatives on third and final reading last year.
Several counterpart versions of the P3 Act in the Senate have yet to muster plenary approval.
“The bill will benefit not only Parañaquenos and Bicolanos but also other micro and small entrepreneurs as well as aspiring ones in different areas of our country,” Yamsuan said.
“When there is an opportunity to increase profit, there is also an opportunity to expand one’s business and hire more employees, which in turn, means many people would be able to get jobs. The long-term gains under the P3 will make the program a prime driver of our economic growth,” he added.
Yamsuan said HB 7363 aims to create the Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-Asenso Fund to ensure the program’s sustainability.
The effective interest rate imposed on P3 loans as proposed under the bill would not exceed one percent per month for direct lending, and 2.5 percent per month if borrowed from accredited financial institutions.
To make P3 accessible to micro and small enterprises (MSEs), the bill authorizes the SBC to accredit Partner Financial Institutions to extend loans under the program. These include rural banks, thrift banks, development banks, cooperative banks, cooperatives, non-stock savings and loan associations, microfinance institutions and other qualified lenders.
Yamsuan said the bill would benefit more than 90 percent of businesses classified as MSEs.
