Wednesday, October 03, 2007 Farmers call for junking of Japan-RP pact By Edmund B. Sestoso
FARMERS in Negros Oriental joined their counterparts in the national level in the intensified campaign for the junking of the Japan-Philippine Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).
Eugene Quirante, Philippine Peasant Institute (PPI) liaison officer for Negros Oriental, said the international agreement would put the farmers at a disadvantage contrary to earlier claims by the National Government.
He said the province, which has thousands of farmers, would be affected by what the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo is doing.
He said that based on the studies made by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), it was revealed that with JPEPA the agriculture sector will suffer.
PIDS is a non-stock, non-profit government research institution.
Based on the studies, Quirante explained that if JPEPA will push through, there will be contraction and unemployment in the agriculture sector.
Quirante slammed the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) for its "deception."
"The statistics being advertised by the Department of Trade and Industry regarding foreign direct investments are speculative, inconsistent, and misleading," stressed Quirante in recent media interviews.
He said it remains a fact that investors are hesitant to come to the Philippines because of high power costs, poor infrastructure, and rampant corruption.
"The JPEPA is not a magic wand that will eliminate all these factors," added Quirante.
He also appealed to the leadership of the Liga ng mga Barangay to withdraw its support from the controversial JPEPA, pointing out that this will also negatively affect their constituents.
"We know that the Liga ng mga Barangay will defend the jobs and the lives of every Filipino citizen. We have faith in the Liga ng mga Barangay. They will not be convinced by the lies being propagated by the pro-JPEPA panel to get support for this unconstitutional, unfair, and criminal treaty," Quirante stressed.
In the national front, three hearings have been concluded on the JPEPA at the Senate and the "pro-JPEPA government panel" repeatedly failed to defend the merits of the treaty, Quirante said.
"Because of their failure to defend the JPEPA inside the Senate, they have resorted to propagating lies outside the Senate in order to rally for support from different groups," he added.
Quirante has called on Negrosanons to rally behind the farmers' group and join in the junking of the controversial JPEPA.
