Member organizations of the farmer-scientist network Masipag Mindanao are urging candidates in the May 2025 midterm elections to push for measures that promote farmers’ rights and environmental conservation.
This week, Masipag organized two multi-sectoral electoral forums in Mindanao to highlight pressing issues affecting communities and to challenge candidates to prioritize the interests of grassroots sectors.
“Elections must go beyond gimmicks. As we stand at a crossroads, we are coming together once again to urge candidates to listen to us and prioritize our calls for a just and humane society in their campaigns,” said Ignacio Sulit, an organic rice farmer and chair of Masipag Mindanao’s regional management team.
At the Green Votes Forum in Koronadal City on Monday, April 28, farmers, Indigenous people and advocates in South Cotabato signed a call for urgent action to protect the province’s natural resources and promote sustainable development for future generations.
Profit-driven projects, such as monocrop plantations and large-scale mining, continue to threaten the environment and way of life in South Cotabato. Despite this, communities continue to resist what they call “development aggression” in the province.
In Cagayan de Oro City, farmers from Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon and Cagayan de Oro, along with other civil society groups, gathered Tuesday, April 29, for the "Gikan sa Payag Paingon sa Kapitolyo" forum. The event aimed to promote pro-people and pro-environment advocacies and to assess the platforms of political aspirants, helping voters make informed choices.
Masipag also presented its legislative agenda based on the aspirations of small farmers, aiming for what it called the genuine progress of the country.
“We urge candidates to promote genuine agrarian reform, agroecology and advocate for farmers’ rights. Support policies and initiatives by local farmers that will make sustainable agriculture a key pathway to achieve sustainable development of the agricultural sector and the countryside as a whole,” said Leo XL Fuentes, Masipag Mindanao regional coordinator. PR