Community pantry to Communist party?

Editorial

As an effort to fill the gaps of government response in addressing the issue of widespread hunger amidst the ongoing pandemic, community pantries have risen left and right in the nation as a culmination of public action. Yet despite such a noble effort, the situation turned sour when Army Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr., chief of the military’s Southern Luzon Command as well as concurrent spokesman of the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), baselessly aligned these efforts as schemes of the Communist Party of the Philippines in an accusing manner that is called “red-tagging.” With community pantries functioning as a laudable form of “Bayanihan” in such dire times, it is both disappointing and infuriating that the impulsive actions of authorities are to malign them, even in the face of the needy; certainly, this has drawn outcries and uproars from the people, and it would be well-appreciated and timely if an apt government response were to present itself.

The initiator of the Maginhawa community pantry – which set off a united inspiration and acted as a progenitor for the development of more pantries in other areas (such as Quezon City, Rizal, and Nueva Ecija) – Ana Patricia Non, remarked that she was “tired of inaction.” This, according to her, became her drive behind setting up a small, grocery-filled bamboo cart on a pavement that day on April 14, which has led to the rise of approximately 300 community pantry efforts nationwide as of present. While her actions no doubt carried the essence of the “Bayanihan” spirit, it is also apparent that it has become a sign of solidarity for those who have fallen victim to the laxness of the Philippine COVID-19 response. For some struggling people, these community pantries are their ray of hope, their only means of survival in getting through each day without an empty stomach. One can only imagine their reaction when this very ray of hope was branded off as a communist plot and when a possibility of it being shut down arose.

On top of that, Army Lt. Gen. Antonio Parlade Jr. had the boldness to liken Ana Patricia Non’s actions as those of Satan’s, a biblical figure in the Christian faith. During an interview for One News, he stated that, like with Satan who was an individual that gave Eve the apple where it all started, Ana was doing the same. He even went as far as to indirectly imply that a communist party was behind the pantries: “I’m not referring to her. I’m referring to the big organization that may be at the back of all these. That's what we were saying, that's what I was saying.”

With the same level of thought as a conspiracy theory and a sense of false neutrality, he also remarked these: “I told you I have nothing against her but that’s what we want to know. Why did they sprout up all of a sudden? Why do they have a single theme? We really don't know. I really don't know. I’m not part of the intel but I’m just a spokesperson.” By now it would be extremely apparent and evident that Parlade Jr. has endangered the sake of Patricia Non and those involved with her, community pantry-related or not, without even a shred of solid evidence on the grounds of his reckless red-tagging. Whether or not privilege was a factor of such actions, it cannot be ignored that his activities were insensitive of the state of the poverty-stricken and the socially-excluded.

Moreover, even senators disapprove of the red-tagging of the pantries. According to Rappler, at least 8 senators have issued a joint statement telling the police and NTF-ELCAC to leave pantries alone. Currently, the collective stand of the people is “no to red-tagging,” and it would be highly wise for involved authorities to heed and recognize these complaints. The most logical course of action to be undertaken at present is not to scandalize community pantries, but to allow them to operate as long as they can. To allow them the freedom to operate on their own or to seek the help of government or legal non-government institutions in providing their services and in regulating order and processes would be desirable. At the very least, the obligation of the government in all of this is to ensure the existence and accordance of participants in sound health protocols and physical distancing guidelines. Any alleged talks of community pantries as a covert propaganda of communist parties should be removed from the table altogether, considering its inappropriateness with our nation’s more alarming matters that are more deserving of immediate attention.

In line with the growing numbers of community pantries, one such notable example is that of Lancaster New City (LNC) Cavite, one of the biggest township developments in Cavite covering Imus, Kawit and General Trias, which has acted with the initiative in mind to provide for the community’s people. The LNC-Faith Community Pantry, along with their KALIH-nity (Kalikasan Healthy LNC Community Environmental Program) Pantry, involve the participation of the St. Edward School, specifically the Faith campus, along with various student volunteers that seek to contribute to the noble cause. The latter pantry is a solidarity project of the Lancaster Estates Homeowners Association, Inc. (LEHOA), Property Company of Friends, Inc., The LNC Link, St. Edward School, and GalingLNC – it is where volunteers can donate used, emptied, and cleaned plastic bottles to help build the LNC Faith Community Fund to help sustain the Community Pantry efforts in LNC. Furthermore, both efforts follow and enforce strict health protocols in order to ensure the safety of the people involved. This is the result of “Bayanihan” that is carried out by a community that cares for its citizens, a prime example that is worthy of praise and fit to be an example for others to follow.

All in all, community pantries have, without a doubt, attracted the nation’s spotlight and became a topic of critical discourse. With talks of communism, biblical allusions, and harmful speculations that surround a just public effort to provide for the hungry, a general stand must be made clear: red-tagging is a malicious practice that has unjustly jeopardized the life and reputation of those named with it, in this case Ana Patricia Non and those involved with her. With her being responsible for the spur of community pantries nationwide, it would be counterproductive for the country should such baseless accusations continue unchecked – a complete cease has to be made for the welfare of the public. It is a dangerous and completely unsupported speculation that community pantries are works of communist parties – they are an astonishing form of the “Bayanihan” spirit that the Filipino people are well-known for, but in this time of pandemic, it may very well be a desperate call for action and accountability from the government. In assuming so, people are made aware of the discrepancies and gaps in government responses as more and more areas turn to the efforts of their own people in order to make up for what is clearly lacking. Let this act of solidarity be a stern message to authorities on the dissatisfaction of the people they are supposed to serve and protect; after all, it is a distressing and miserable proof that the nation is faring badly despite many claims that say so otherwise.

Editor-in-Chief: John Paul Anyayahan

Cartoonist: Hannah Bercasio