NEGRENSE Aurelio Gerardo Valderrama Jr., the newly-installed Board Member of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA), has vowed to work towards the unification of a common goal and set aside political and personal agenda for the survival of the industry.
Valderrama is appointed SRA Board Member representing the planters.
"I will talk to every planter, find out what their concerns are. My dream and my prayer is that we can unify and have one common agenda," Valderrama said after taking his oath before Bacolod City Mayor Albee Benitez at the Bacolod City Government Center (BCGC) on Saturday, August 6.
Valderrama, president of the Vicmico Planters Association Inc. and current director of the Confederation of Sugar Producers Association, Inc., was named to the post by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. late last week.
Marcos is also the concurrent Secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA).
Valderrama, in an interview on the sidelines of his oath-taking, noted that one of the weaknesses of the sugar industry is that “we could not get our acts together.”
"I hope we can talk to everyone and see what we can do to unify the different aggrupations," he said, adding that "we have to work towards the protection of small sugar producers, who are mostly agrarian reform beneficiaries."
Valderrama added, “We need to work for the interest of the greater majority in the sugar industry.”
He said that the bigger challenges facing the industry today are the rising cost of production primarily triggered by the spiralling prices of fertilizer and fuel cost.
To solve this pressing issue, the President earlier said he will explore government-to- government purchase of fertilizers to bring the prices down.
The shortage of sugar supply in the country today, Valderrama said, is another challenge but expressed confidence that the DA under Marcos and the SRA will be able to address the problem in the next two weeks.
Joining Valderrama at his oath-taking over the weekend at the BCGC were his wife, Marie Rose, and children, JD and Camille, and their families as well as the board of directors of Confed, Vicmico PAI, Vicmico Planters Multi-Purpose Cooperative and the VMC Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative. (PR)