Choose a career that fits present reality
- Sen. Roxas
In choosing a career, one should be guided by the paradigm or
concept that one now lives in the Computer Age and under a
globalized or liberalized environment because the competition no
longer lurks within the home turf but it has become global.
That was the gist of the message of Senator Mar Roxas to the
almost 2,000 high school and college students who attended the 6th
Francis Padua-Papica Leadership Conference held last Saturday,
February 4 at the Camarines Sur Convention Center, Pili.
The conference was spearheaded by the Francis Padua-Papica
Foundation, a non-profit organization supported by Governor LRay
Villafuerte.
A former Secretary of the Department of Trade and Industry under
the cabinet of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo before he became
a lawmaker, Senator Roxas pointed out that the world has changed
so much in the last 5 to 10 years and that the advent of
computerization has changed the way business or service is being
conducted now.
He cited as an example, the business of selling/buying of products
where it could now be done at the click of the mouse through the
Internet under the so-called on line E-Commerce. The very
important thing here is in the delivery of the products because
under the so-called Fulfillment of E-Commerce what one purchased
through the internet whether the goods came from countries like
Germany, Italy, U.S or even China should be delivered direct to
your home or to a specific address.
The senator also told his young audience to choose a career that
one is really very interested into, yet one should still be guided
by the present reality that one lives in a globalized or
liberalized environment and that the competition no longer comes
simply from the neighborhood but it has become global.
He also pointed out that the ambitions of many people to work in
big companies or corporations are no longer attainable because
many firms no longer hire so many employees because the current
trend now is that firms resort to “outsourcing”, which means that
the work done for a company is done by another company or people
other than the original company’s employees. Through outsourcing,
firms could save immensely on expenses such employees’ salaries
and other office costs. An example of this is a company from Japan
engaged in the production of computer parts, instead of hiring
people within the country, it sets up a plant in other countries
like the Philippines where the labor cost is much cheaper.
The other resource speaker during the conference was Atty. Francis
Padua Papica, himself the founder of the foundation who discussed
the topic, “Plight of the OFWs: Should You Be One?”
Atty. Papica, who had the chance to live in the United States at
the age of 16 disclosed that the life in the US is full of hard
work and it is not the land of milk and honey that many portray it
to be. The good news for people intending to work stateside is
that no job is a menial job, every job is a good job, he pointed
out.
He told those who dream of going abroad to pursue courses like
Caregiving, Nursing or Physical Therapy for they are quite in
demand. He advised the students that if some of them would be
given the chance to work abroad, they should not forget to come
back to their hometown and share whatever blessings they may
acquire from their stint abroad to their fellow countrymen back
home.
Established in l997, the Francis Padua-Papica Foundation has made
great strides that impact on the lives of the people particularly
in areas of youth empowerment and community service. The FPPI has
launched several projects and initiatives like the College Bound
Program, which provides 4-year scholarship grants to outstanding
students who exemplify values such as leadership and community
service.
This year, it launched, the “Read to Live, Libro Ko Para Sa Iyo”,
a national program which aims primarily to bring home some 100,000
books from the United States to be distributed to several schools
throughout the country. Atty. Papica pointed out the importance of
reading books especially if one is planning to be an OFW because
it could contribute further to one’s grasp of the English
language. According to Atty. Papica, these books have already been
distributed to several schools in Camarines Sur including schools
in Sipocot, Libmanan, Baao, Tigaon, Goa and Naga City. S.
NIEVES
