Press Release
January 21, 2008

Bible conference:
Villar: Entrepreneurship with nationalism
to steer nation out of poverty

Senate President Manny Villar stressed the need to change the Filipino mindset of employment to entrepreneurship to help lift the masses out of poverty while propelling the country's economy.

"We have become a nation of employees," Villar said, "Unless we change this mindset, we cannot lift our people out of poverty," the Nacionalista Party president said during the Bible Believers League for Morality and Democracy (Biblemode) National Conference of Pastors and Preachers led by Manila (6th district) Rep. Benny Abante at the Philippine International Convention Center in Pasay City on Jan. 17.

Villar, a successful entrepreneur before he entered politics, recounted how he managed to rise from poverty and selling shrimps in the wet market to become one of Asia's biggest real estate developers.

"We must look for our innate talents and abilities and use them to find our niche in business," Villar said. "Oftentimes, we look at our problems and inadequacies which deter us from succeeding and believing in ourselves."

"I tell those who approach me and say they have no money to start a business that they should not fear because in the first place, walang mawawala sa kanila," he quipped.

The Nacionalista Party president said that entrepreneurship is not only challenging but also enjoyable. "It feels good to be independent, to be the captain of the ship, to steer one's course and achieve according to one's aspirations," he said.

However, Villar said entrepreneurship must be strengthened by one's sense of nationalism and love for country. "Entrepreneurship combined with nationalism is our potent weapon in steering the nation and our countrymen out of poverty."

After his speech for which he got a standing ovation, Biblemode leaders led by Abante entered into a "covenant of support" for the Senate President, "We hereby solemnly declare and bind ourselves to support Senate President Manny Villar in all his programs, plans of action and aspirations for the good of our nation and countrymen," they said.

The leaders also prayed over the Senate President. The Biblemode is a coalition of independent Baptist pastors and preachers from different churches across the country.

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