DAVAO City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio signed an executive order to create the Davao Food Terminal Complex (DFTC) executive committee and defining its powers functions and duties.
Duterte-Carpio, in an executive order signed last February 28, created a committee that will ensure the successful and continuous construction, maintenance, and operations of the DFTC in Davao.
Based on the order, the Davao Food Terminal Complex Executive Committee (Execom) will be composed of the city mayor who will be represented by the city administrator in case of her absence, the City Agriculturist Office as the vice-chairman, and the Assistant City Administrator for Operations, City Council chair for Committee on Agriculture and Food, City Economic Enterprises, Office of the City Planning and Development Coordinator, City Cooperative Office, Department of Agriculture(DA)-Davao, Federation of Farmers Cooperative in Davao City and representatives from vegetable and fruit industry.
The responsibilities of the execom include the evaluation and approval of proposals for the business plan and operations manual for the DFTC. They are also tasked to monitor and oversee the operation and maintenance of the DFTC. They will also ensure that the operation of the DFTC remains consistent to its intended purpose, which among others, is to improve farmer-consumer trading market and recommend policies to appropriate authorities for the efficient operations of the DFTC.
Aside from the DFTC-Execom, an infrastructure monitoring team will also be created to ensure the effective planning, design, and constructions of the DFTC.
The team will be led by City Engineer lawyer Joseph Dominic Felizarta, Interim City Architect’s Office Architect Clyde Eric Verga, City Agriculturist Leo Brian Leuterio, Samuel Escamis from City Agriculturist Office, Office of the City Planning and Development Coordinator official, Engineer Jose Froilan Rigor and Engineer Minerva Taculin from the OCE.
A representative from DA-Davao is also included in the Infrastructure monitoring team. Section 4 of the ordinance also mandates the creation of a DFTC-Technical Working Group (TWG) which will be composed of Assistant City Administrator, lawyer Lawrence Bantiding, who is head, City Agriculturist Leo Brian Leuterio, as the assistant head.
Members will include Samuel Escamis from the City Agriculturist Office (CAO), Maribeth Lumactod, City Economic Enterprises (CEE) Chair Lauro Tungpalan from the Office of the Councilor Marissa Abella, City Council Chair on committee on agriculture and food, Estela Malate of CPDO, Jonathan Kintanar of CEE, and Donna España of the City Cooperative Office.
Representative from DA, Department of Science and Technology, Department of Trade and Industry and Food and Drug Agency of the Department of health and private sector are also included.
Some of the main duties and responsibilities of the committee include recommending ways and assisting the formulation of the Business Plan and Operational Manual of the DFTC.
The committee are also tasked to implement mechanism to organize and strengthen farmers’ organizations, conduct geographic survey and map out farming areas, increase capacity of farmers and sustain capability through technology, increase the capacity of farmers and sustain capability through technology information, good agricultural practices, organic farming, inputs/resources/ and skill, among others.
Section 6 of the order also directed the office of the CAO and CEE to recommend personnel who will serve as a Joint Secretariat of the DFTC Execom and the DFTC-TWG. (KVC)