Entrepreneurial Farmer

By Ambrosio R. Villorente

Arroyo Government Is Oppressing and Depressing Farmers

Team Banga came out the champion of the Governor Carlito S. Marquez Cup 2005 after it defeated team Malay in the best of three series. The basketball tournament was played at the Augusto B. Legaspi Sports Center, Kalibo, Aklan.
At the beginning, 17 teams participated representing the 17 municipalities of Aklan. However, after the elimination games, three (3) teams were disqualified due to technicalities. Team Balete, Team Numancia and Team New Washington were disqualified.
The victory of team Banga and its championship could have been the sweetest if not for the disqualification of the three (3) teams mentioned above. They were disqualified from their continued participation in the tournament for violation of tournament rules they themselves formulated and approved.
It must be remembered that “there is no right way to do the wrong thing”. And there is no other way to victory but through an honest participation.

-o-

Last month, the National Food Authority in Banga, Aklan sponsored a press briefing on “Rice Fortification” program. It was a one half day briefing with questions and answers portion.
The NFA staff with Provincial director Pablito G. Gemarino discussed with the members of the Aklan media and other participants the rationale of the rice fortification program, its scope and methodology of implementation.
According to the findings, rice is so nutrient deficient especially in iron which also results to iron deficiency among the Filipinos.
In order to remedy the situation and one way to enrich rice is to fortify it with the desired food nutrients like iron.
This nutritional deficiency among the people will result to the occurrence of several diseases such as goiter, eye diseases, dullness of the mind, stunted growth among others. And this nutrient deficiency problem is prevalent among the economically depressed families, like the farmers.
Yes, the farmers are the most depressed and oppressed members of the Philippine society. Just imagine how the government is oppressing the farm families. In the year 2004, the P3 billion farm modernization budget was channeled to the election campaign of politicians.
What support does the government give to the farmers? The government just exploit the farmers. Today, the government buys palay at P10.00 per kilogram. This is the price of palay several years ago when one bag of 40 kilogram fertilizer cost P300.00 which today cost P900.00. That P10 per kilogram was when the cost of fuel was 50 percent cheaper than today. The farmers need fuel to operate farm machines to cultivate and irrigate the land and to transport farm production materials to the farms and produce to the market.
Rice is a hydrophonic plant, therefore to grow and produce it, some 5,000 kilograms of water is required to produce one kilogram of palay. Simply said, one hectare paddy rice needs 50,000 metric tons of water use from land preparation to harvesting. Can a farmer produce palay sans water? No, all his efforts will be wasted in palay project without efficient irrigation support.
Moreover, among agricultural projects, rice is exposed to all kinds of risks, be it pests and diseases, adversed weather and climatic conditions and even to thieves. Rice crops cannot be evacuated in times of typhoons and floods.
But look. When the farmers produce rice bounties, everybody is happy including this government. When Filipino farmers had bad crops, they cry alone. This present government simply imports rice from abroad for the consumers who are highly subsidized as well as the foreign farmers who are also highly subsidized.
These are the reasons why most Filipino farmers are oppressed and depressed. This present government gives no motivation to the Filipino rice farmers to increase production. It even stole the money to modernize Filipino farmers. This government does not provide what Marcos government has provided the Filipino farmers such as cheap agricultural credit, subsidized seeds and other farm inputs. This government has even removed the farm extension support. /MP