“Organized labor groups reminded Arroyo and Ciriaco that based on findings of the commission, each family of six needs 852 pesos per day to survive in Metro Manila and that the current 350-peso minimum wage regularly received by nonagricultural workers is far below the required amount for a family of six to survive.”- Quote from April 22, 2008 UPI Asia.com.
The current exchange rate for pesos to US dollars is about 47:1. The minimum daily wage in Manila is 350 pesos which is equal to roughly 7 dollars. That is not per hour, but per day. 7 dollars per day. And according to the above quote, a family of 6 needs at least 852 pesos a day. Many families have way more than 6. Grandparents and children and cousins and siblings, etc. often live together in small shacks or even on the streets. Jobs are hard to come by and even the ones that can be found only provide the bare minimum wage or even less if they can get away with it. At least a third of the population of Manila lives in the slums and are losing hope for survival.
The last 4 days of ministry in Manila, I got the opportunity to learn about an organization that is trying to give hope back to the poor here in the Philippines. It is called, “Jeepney Magazine.” It is a street paper, part of the International Network of Street Papers and is a source for information about the issues going on with the slums and street people in Manila. It has articles written about individuals and their stories and articles about the economics and poverty. The main objective of the magazine, though is to provide jobs for the homeless. The magazine is sold by vendors who are homeless or living in the slums and need more income to take care of the basic needs of their families.There are numerous street papers around the world in cities like New York, London, Sydney, etc., that are very successful in what they do. “Jeepney” just got started a year ago and is the first street paper in the Philippines. They are desperately needing to get the word out about the presence of the magazine so more people will be looking to purchase.it. That is where I came in. Along with Nate and Holli, I helped spread the word about the magazine by going to businesses and talking to University students in the Intramuros town area. It was way out of my comfort zone, but I felt that this was a cause that was worth the discomfort and pushed myself through it anyways.
I got the privilige of meeting two of the vendors, Dante and Josef. Both are working hard to try to provide for their families and make a better life for them. I would ask that you would pray for them and for the “Jeepney Magazine”. If you are interested in learning more about it or how you can donate to the cause, please go to the website at.. http://www.thejeepney.com/ .
