RURAL POVERTY

Public policy and government programs must promote development that not only fulfills the material needs of citizens, but also affirms human dignity and freedom, integrity in governance, national sovereignty, and the spiritual dimension of human beings. 

• The Department of Agriculture (DA) received a budget of ₱163.7 billion for 2023, equivalent to almost 40% increase from the 2022 allocation of ₱117.2 billion. Eight of its attached agencies (National Food Authority, Sugar Regulatory Administration, National Irrigation Administration, Philippine Rice Research Institute, Philippine Fisheries Development Authority, National Tobacco Administration, Philippine Coconut Authority and National Dairy Authority) were also granted a total average rise of 33% in budget from ₱46.2 billion in 2022 to ₱62 billion in 2023. Two other attached DA agencies that got bigger funds are the Fertilizer and Pesticide Authority and the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR). This was reported to be the first time for the department to receive a huge increase in budget with President Marcos, Jr. at the helm.
  
  

• The DA intends to use majority of its ₱163.7 billion budget in “boosting farm production and forestalling a looming food crisis.” According to DA Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban, the department would utilize its resources to increase food production, lower food prices, create employment opportunities, and generate stable incomes for the rural poor.
  
  Another undersecretary, Merceditas Sombillo shared, among others, that the Masagana Rice Program would be granted ₱30.5 billion to help 2.3 million farmers; an allocation of ₱4.6 billion to benefit more than a thousand fisherfolk with the provision of boats, broodstocks and fingerlings; ₱13.1 billion to build more than one million kilometers of farm-to-market roads; financial assistance of ₱2.7 billion to 37,250 small farmers and fisherfolk and 130 small and medium enterprises; and ₱1 billion as fuel discount and cash grants to over 300,000 farmers and fisherfolk. 

• Even with the president as agriculture secretary, the agricultural sector displayed an unimpressive performance during the first year of his administration. After some 2% growth in the fourth quarter and full year of 2021, crop production declined by 1% in the comparative periods of 2022. Due to the high cost of fertilizer and fuel, including the damaging effects of natural calamities, palay and corn production fell by 2.5% and 6.9%. On a similar trend, fisheries production fell by 6.6% in the last quarter of 2022 and by 5% for the full year. A rebound was made in the first quarter of 2023 as agriculture and fisheries registered an annual growth rate of 2.1%

• Importation of food products was done haphazardly. Batches for  products such as rice, sugar, and onions were made even during the harvest seasons of our local produce. The consequent oversupply in inventory, however, did not depress the prices of said products. Prices were either retained in high levels or hiked further. For instance, the retail price of onion shot up to as much as ₱700 in December 2022 notwithstanding the imprudent importations made alongside local production and harvest. The latest price of rice (as of June 7, 2023) is between ₱37 and ₱81 per kilo even with increases in supply from imports allowed by the Rice Tariffication Law and the president’s promise of a retail price of ₱20 per kilo under the Kadiwa project, which has yet to be fulfilled. The lowest price recorded thus far is at ₱22 per kilo. In the meantime, farm gate prices were kept at low levels, averaging ₱17.60 per kilo from July 2022 to February 2023.

• Apart from the rise in prices, the sugar importation mess during the first months of the administration led to the resignation of then DA Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastion, a scientist with a doctorate degree in agriculture from Cornell University, youngest director of the Philippine Rice Research Institute, and a Ten Outstanding Young Men (TOYM) awardee.

After having been given the authority to sign contracts, the  issuance of Sugar Order 4 (SO4) signed by Sebastian as head of the Sugar Regulatory Administration’s (SRA) procurement of sugar inventory, authorizing the importation of some 300,000 metric tons (MT) of refined sugar, was rescinded by the president.  Malacañang and then Executive Secretary (ES) Vic Rodriguez denied  that Sebastian got President Marcos Jr’s approval to import said quantity. Moreover in the Senate’s investigation, it surfaced that Marcos Jr even mulled over importing 600,000 MT or double the proposed volume of the SRA committee, which the president, and concurrently DA secretary, and the ES also denied despite corroborations from the other SRA Board members. Having taken responsibility for his actions, Sebastian resigned due to the fallout resulting from the “illegal” order. 

Public policy and government programs must correct historical injustice to groups of the marginalized and must promote equality, within the context of love for one’s fellow human beings.

Public policy and government programs must affirm human labor as the most important element of production, establish fair compensation that allows workers to raise families within a decent standard of living, protect the rights of workers to self-organization, and create opportunities for employment and livelihood with dignity.

• As part of its short-term intervention for around 30,000 families affected by an oil spill in Oriental Mindoro in February, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) conducted various activities under its cash-for-work (CFW) program. These included collection of locally available materials for making improvised oil spill booms, establishment of backyard gardens, rehabilitation of mangroves, and conduct of community clean-up operations. The CFW program aimed to provide temporary employment to individuals, mostly fishers, who lost their daily income. The program beneficiaries from Oriental Mindoro and Antique received ₱355 to ₱450 per day, an amount equivalent to their daily regional minimum wage. DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian also gave a directive to extend the CFW, as well as the distribution of family food packs and cash assistance, until May. The CFW program was supposed to run for only 15 days but was extended up to 45 days.
  
  In addition, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) reported 19,892 beneficiaries affected by the oil spill will be given emergency employment and livelihood assistance worth ₱110 million through the Tulong Panghanapbuhay sa Ating Disadvantaged/Displaced Workers (TUPAD), in partnership with Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), Department of Tourism (DOT), and the provincial government.
  
  The DOT initiated capacity development training programs for qualified beneficiaries on culinary tourism, farm tourism, tourism micro retail, and health and wellness tourism, among others.  In addition, TESDA allocated funds for skills training in construction, agriculture, tourism, and automotive as well as livelihood training programs. The DOLE said that it strives to bring more sustainable and inclusive assistance to the affected individuals and families while they provide temporary aid to disadvantaged or displaced workers under the TUPAD program.
  
  The Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (DA-BFAR) allocated over ₱118 million in emergency and relief assistance, early recovery efforts, and mid-to-long-term recovery aid for the fishers affected by the oil spill. Based on the data from the bureau, the cost of the oil spill damage amounted to  ₱445 million worth of fishing gear and produce, resulting in a ₱441 million income loss for about 26,000 fisherfolk over 22 fishing days. As a consequence of the risk of contamination, the DA-BFAR also imposed a suspension of fishing activities in the oil spill-affected fishing clusters in Oriental Mindoro until the contamination is ruled out. 

• The livelihood and relief assistance provided by the government agencies are mere band-aid solutions that only last for a short period of time. The government has failed to provide  long-term and sustainable ways of supporting the affected communities to recover from the catastrophe and continue with their livelihoods.   

• According to the Maritime Industry Authority (MARINA) report submitted to the Senate Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, and climate change, MT Princess Empress reportedly had no permit to operate, but was still able to sail 17 to 19 times before it sank in the waters off Naujan Town in Oriental Mindoro on February 28. The MARINA and the Philippine Coast Guard had conflicting statements on whether or not the vessel had the necessary documents to operate The MARINA administrator explained that RDC Reield Marine Services, which owns MT Princess Empress, lacked the required documents in its application to amend its certificate of public convenience (CPC).  However, contrary to the finding of MARINA presented at a Senate hearing on March 14, the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) claimed the tanker that sank off Oriental Mindoro had a permit to operate. Moreover, concerns about the forgery of documents that allowed MT Princes Empress to sail around 17 to 19 times prior to the incident were raised. MARINA regional director denied signing an amended CPC, which covered the MT princess empress, saying the copy of the CPC released by the PCG was not authentic. Given these  testimonies from MARINA and PCG, an investigation should have been ordered to ferret out the truth about possible forgery of documents and appropriate charges filed against the erring officials. 

Public policy and government programs must safeguard and conserve natural resources and promote production that does not destroy the environment.

• During a Senate hearing on October 11, 2022, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Undersecretary Ernesto Adobo disclosed that the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) of the project was put on hold because the zoning requirements had not yet been complied with. In addition, the Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) from the affected Indigenous Peoples (IPs)—as required under the Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of 1997—had not yet been given. The temporary suspension of the ₱12.2-billion Kaliwa Dam project was seen as a step forward by Kalikasan People’s Network for the Environment (Kalikasan). Sen. Raffy Tulfo also approved of the suspension as he expressed his opposition to the controversial project during the hearing. He said that “stopping the dam project will protect the Sierra Madre and uphold the rights of the indigenous communities.” 

• In December 2022, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) began tunneling in Teresa, Rizal, after MWSS supposedly obtained the FPIC from affected IP communities. In the same month, the Supreme Court also junked the petition filed by the Makabayan bloc declaring Kaliwa Dam as illegal and the government's loan agreement with China for the project as void. By March 2023, construction of the dam was already 22 percent complete and 352 meters of the 22-kilometer tunnel had already been excavated in Teresa, Rizal. MWSS expects the tunneling to be completed in  December 2026 and the Kaliwa Dam to be operational by 2027.
  
  Given the progress of the project in the past year, the administration has essentially supported and facilitated the construction of the Kaliwa Dam. Although the project is proposed to augment the water supply in Metro Manila, it cannot be denied that Kaliwa Dam threatens to destroy the ecosystem and biodiversity of the Sierra Madre mountain range.
  
  

• The government’s response to the oil spill, in terms of containing its spread, rehabilitating the affected areas and providing assistance to the affected communities, had been slow, as lamented by Mayor Jennifer Cruz of Pola, Oriental Mindoro.