Regine Velasquez guested on noontime show It's Showtime yesterday and Asia's songbird had something to say about a child's responsibility to earn for their family.
READ: Regine Velasquez on Why It's Not a Child's Responsibility to Be the Breadwinner
During a television guesting on It's Showtime, Regine Velasquez was asked about impact of her becoming the breadwinner of her family at the young age of eleven. The singer responded, "Oo for a long time naging breadwinner ako, bata pa lang. Mga eleven [years old]," she shared. "Mahirap lang yung family ko kaya kailangan ng konting tulong. And since I have this voice, ginamit ko to help my family."
Being the eldest of five children, she took on most of her family's financial responsibilities, even citing how sending her siblings to school was her greatest life achievement. "For me that's my greatest achievement, kase napagtapos ko yung mga kapatid ko sa pagaaral," she said. "Kase yun ang pangarap ko e. Gusto ko rin magtapos. Kaya lang, hindi naman ako mahilig mag school so paano ako matatapos?"
But even if Regine absorbed her family's financial needs, she doesn't expect the same from her own kin. “Sa mga breadwinner, gusto kong sabihin sa inyo na natatapos dapat yun. Hindi yun forever. Pag nakatulong na kayo, tapos na. Iisipin niyo yung sarili niyo na," she shared. "Natatapos siya. Hindi pwedeng hindi. You have to give yourself time to also grow na as a normal human being. Hindi pwedeng ikaw lahat ang may responsibility.
“First of all, I want to say na kaya tayo tumutulong because we are given special abilities. Pero hindi responsibilidad ng anak na maging breadwinner," she pointed out. "I was not obligated to, pero nakita ko kasi yung sitwasyon namin eh… Binigyan ako ng maraming pagkakataon, so tumulong ako. Pero hindi, never naging responsibility ng anak maging breadwinner. Because it’s the parents’ responsibility [na] buhayin yung anak mo.”
Hear, hear! It's a great point that bears repeating. To all the breadwinners out there, remember that it doesn't have to be your burden to bear forever.
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