Nueva Ecija school reopens honesty store

MANILA, Philippines — A public school in Talavera, Nueva Ecija has reopened an honesty store, where students and teachers can procure items without being attended to by a storekeeper.

The “Tindahan ni Honest Juan” at the San Ricardo National High School was patterned after the Honesty Cage of the province of Batangas.

The store is unattended and buyers can voluntarily leave their payment in a designated box for the items they bought.

“Every room had honesty stores before the pandemic started. We decided to bring these back,” school principal Catalina Salum told The STAR yesterday.

The store is part of the Project Watch, a joint initiative of the Department of Education and Junior Chamber International, which aims to promote honesty and make learners become productive, Salum said.

The ”Tindahan ni Honest Juan” sells candies, biscuits, mineral water and school supplies.

“If they are honest to themselves, it is certain that they will reap success,” Salum said, referring to the students and teachers.