From the desk of Jon Reyes, MFBC President
When we formed the Manitoba Filipino Business Council, one of our objectives is to assist, promote and participate in activities for the benefit of the community. Clear, simple and very transparent. As a leader, I feel disappointed when I see other organizations fail. Do we start pointing fingers and start blaming each other each time that there is an error? Or do we fix the issue to build that trust again?
The PCCM is the face of the community. We value and trust that the 65,000 Filipinos will feel safe and secure when they seek help from them. With the recent events that have happened with the poor attendance at their AGM and not following the proper protocol to send the donated funds prior to the due date is disheartening. It is an eye opener and an opportunity for everyone to see what else is hiding behind that curtain.
Stated in their AGM report that they had information sessions, one on starting a business. No date was indicated and the MFBC has always been open to working with other organizations in the community. I find it quite odd that we never got approached to work together. The MBFC is the “Voice of Business” in the Filipino community and we would have liked to work with the PCCM but we have never been approached.
To those who volunteered their time for the greater good of our community, I couldn’t blame you for losing faith and trust with the PCCM. I started raising questions too, as to why there were only 22 members at an AGM out of the 150 members that supposedly representing the Filipinos in Manitoba. Also, when you have only $12 in revenue for membership from April 2012 to March 2013 tells me only one membership was purchased or renewed. Instead, the PCCM president, had to divert the question to his treasurer, who is currently in the Philippines. What he could have done was to inquire with the assistant treasurer who was present at the AGM. A great leader should be a good example, someone who could lead, be responsible and accountable to the people he or she has to report to. Better yet, the president should know his organizations financials.
I really hope that one day, we can truly see that the PCCM’s objective to “foster unity, cooperation and interaction among the Filipino-Canadian organizations in Manitoba is fulfilled.
At the end of the day, we will continue our mandate as the business organization within the Filipino Community and we will do what we can to ensure our members and non-members are well represented, taken care of and most importantly treated with respect. The MFBC hopes the PCCM with the proper leadership and board of directors, can one day be the organization that unifies all the associations in the community, something that we and all the Filipino organizations would like to be a part of.
