MANILA-President Arroyo has announced she will issue an administrative order authorizing the use of P5 billion to help the country’s rice farmers.
The amount represents five percent of the country’s P100-billion budget surplus last year.
The President issued the announcement Tuesday night, when she arrived from a three-day trip to Hong Kong. She called a meeting with Cabinet members at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) to discuss the rice supply issue.
“I will issue an administrative order allowing corporations and institutions of government to use five percent of their surplus amounting to more than P100 billion for planting rice and other anti-poverty programs, in accordance with the law,” Arroyo said in her arrival statement.
She asked officials to coordinate with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) on the formulation of projects.
Arroyo also ordered the DA and the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to strictly monitor rice warehouses and public markets all over the country and help boost production.
Arroyo also ordered the DA to craft a program that will allow the local government units (LGUs) to plant palay and sell the produce to the NFA.
“There are vacant lots in the provinces and cities that could be used to plant rice since under the Local Government Code, the DA is devolved to the LGUs,” she said.
Yesterday, Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. criticized the World Bank (WB) for discouraging the grant of state subsidies to rice farmers while urging the government to reduce the tariff on imported rice.
Pimentel said if farmers in other countries get substantial subsidies from their respective governments to boost food production, there is no reason why Filipino farmers not receive a similar aid from government, given the rising cost of production for rice, corn, sugar and other crops.
“The World Bank should explain why it says it is ‘ruinous’ for our government to subsidize our rice farmers but not when Japan, Thailand, the US and other countries subsidize their farmers,” he said.
Movement
In Cebu City, Mayor Tomas Osmeña said he will arrange for the setting up of “Tindahan Natin” or “Bigasan ni Gloria” stores in the upland areas to avert any food and rice shortage in the mountain barangays.
Osmeña said the National Government program on subsidized stores would ensure the continuous supply of cheap food.
“We are looking into addressing, first of all, the problem in the mountain barangays. We will bring the government stores to the mountains so people there can be assured of getting cheap rice,” he said.
For the long-term solution to the threats of a rice shortage, City Hall wants to bring more irrigation and livelihood projects to the mountain barangays, including dressmaking for women.
The City wants to replicate Oriental Negros’ irrigation system in the farming barangays, which uses pumps that do not require electricity.
This way, Osmeña said, farming and food production cost would go down since farmers would not need to buy fuel for their irrigation equipment.
Yesterday, his son Miguel also went to Barangay Binaliw, the pilot barangay for the City’s planned dressmaking program, which will have women in the upland areas manufacturing the office uniforms of City Government employees.
Osmeña said he designated Miguel to work with garments manufacturer and retailer Penshoppe to check how the Cebu-based company can help in the implementation of the program, including training the beneficiaries.
Both the irrigation and livelihood projects would help the families in the mountain barangays increase their income and help the City address food security and poverty concerns at the same time, the mayor said. (PNA/Sunnex/LCR)
