Giving is the key to wealth

THE Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry Inc. (FFCCCII) has donated 60 sacks of rice — each sack weighing 50 kilograms — and 10,000 face masks for distribution to the poor.

Philanthropist Henry Lim Bon Liong, FFCCCII president, turned the donation over to the Ramon Tulfo Good Samaritan Foundation last Wednesday, October 14.

Incidentally, Lim Bon Liong is also a big rice farmer and trader.

The latest donation has replenished the dwindling stocks of rice and canned food in my warehouse.

Every day, my foundation gives away hundreds of food packs — each pack containing 5 kilograms of rice and various canned goods — to charitable organizations, poor barangay ( villages), and people who live in pushcarts in the streets.

The food donations come from my friends who believe that giving to the needy is rewarding.

There is not enough space in this column to mention all my generous friends. My friends and I are guided by the principle that the more we give, the more we receive; and the more we receive, the more we’re able to give.

The cycle of giving-receiving-giving never ends for generous souls.

The universe has an inexhaustible supply.

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Let’s help in mitigating hunger in the country by sharing our excess food or money with the needy.

The latest survey says that 30.7 percent of the population— that’s three out of 10 people — was going hungry as a result of the pandemic.

More blessings come our way when we share.

I beg my readers’ indulgence in citing an excerpt from the all- time best- selling book, The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, about the benefits of cheerful giving:

“Giving is a powerful action to bring more money into your life, because when you are giving you are saying, ‘I have plenty.’ It will not be surprising to you to learn that the wealthiest people on the planet are the greatest philanthropists. They give away vast amounts of money, and as they give, by the law of attraction, the Universe opens up and floods vast amounts of money back to them — multiplied.

“If you are thinking, ‘ I don’t have enough money to give,’ bingo! Now you know why you don’t have enough money! When you think you don’ t have enough to give, start giving( under scoring mine — RTT). As you demonstrate faith in giving, the law of attraction must give you more to give.

“There is a big difference between giving and sacrificing. Giving from a heart that is overflowing feels so good. Sacrificing does not feel good. Don’t confuse the two — they are diametrically opposed. One emits a signal of lack and the other a signal of more- thanenough. Giving from a full heart is one of the most joyous things you can do, and the law of attraction will grab off that signal and flood even more into your life. You can feel the difference.”

In short, the secret to wealth is generosity. ***

The Department of Environment and Natural Resources ( DENR) has fired Teresita R. Perez, a University of the Philippines professor, as consultant.

Perez, who represented the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB), an agency under the DENR, was rude to South Koreans and their Filipino counterparts applying to become potential investors inside the Subic Freeport in Olongapo City.

Perez reportedly berated the Filipino partners of the firm Orion in front of their South Korean counterparts during a virtual meeting on the possibility of setting up a plant inside the Subic Freeport.

Orion plans to set up a liquefied natural gas ( LNG) terminal inside the Freeport Zone and was asking for the DENR’s nod.

Perez is alleged to have accused the Filipino partners of “selling off the country” to their great embarrassment.

My source inside the DENR said that Perez’s unprofessional conduct would not be condoned.

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DENR spokesman Undersecretary Benny Antiporda has slammed environmental experts from the University of the Philippines for saying that the crushed dolomite used along the shore of Manila Bay was “environmentally damaging in the long run.”

The dolomite substitutes for white sand and has beautified the bay.

The Department of Health has said that dolomite is safe.

Antiporda accused the UP experts of being bayaran (paid hacks).

He said the DENR has given the University of the Philippines system P400 million since 2016 as endowment.

“They ( UP environmental experts) attack us despite our generosity,” Antiporda said.

Antiporda said the UP experts could have first talked with DENR officials, their benefactors, before airing their criticism in the media.