DUMAGUETE CITY, Negros Oriental (PIA) — Grupo sa Lumadnon Mag-uuma Tribu Bukidnon president Rico Cameon was happy after receiving one unit of a four-wheel tractor for their farmers’ association from the Department of Agriculture (DA) Region 7.
He said this equipment will benefit 100 members of their association since this will help them till their corn fields faster than the traditional method.
“Dali jud kaayo siyang tabang. Dali gud ang trabaho ani. Kumpara sa kalabaw na gamay ra og agi, di pa kasarang sa ting-init. Kini, bisan ting-init dako kay siyang tabang. Mapaspas ang amo pang-uma,” Cameon said.
(This is a big help. Our work becomes easy compared to using carabao which, aside from plowing a portion of land, can’t withstand extreme heat. Through this equipment, we can till faster even during the dry season.)
He said their farmers’ association tills 120 hectares of land in Barangay Sto Niño, Tanjay City, 78 kilometers north of Dumaguete City.
This is the combined total of land owned by the members of their association.
The group also cultivates cassava as an alternate crop for corn.
Cameon was also a recipient of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s cash aid worth P10,000 under the Presidential Assistance to Farmers, Fisherfolks, and their Families (PAFF) Program.
Cameon personally received the cash aid from the President during the PAFF mass distribution held on June 27 at the Lamberto Macias Sports Center, this city.
He thanked the President and DA for their efforts in bringing services and aid closer to farmers.
“Daghan kaayo salamat sa atoang Presidente na gihatagan pod mi niya og hinabang. Mapasalamaton pod ko sa gobyerno na nakadawat mi og traktora. Daghan kaayong salamat sa DA pinaagi sa corn program. (Pinaagi niini) modaghan ang among harvest sa mais,” he said.
(Thank you very much President for providing aid to us. I am thankful to the government for this tractor. Special thanks to DA particularly in their roll out of corn program. Because of this, we see an increase in our corn harvest.)
Meanwhile, 73-year old Salvador Tagulo, a fisherman from Ajong, Sibulan town received one unit of deep sea set long line fishing gear from the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR) in the same event.
President Marcos supervised the awarding of the fishing gears to Tagulo and two other beneficiaries of BFAR in a simple ceremony held outside the Macias Sports Center.
Tagulo said he is happy that the President and other government line agencies are working together to help fishermen like him.
“Dako kay ko pasalamat sa atong Presidente ron. Duna gud siyay natabang namo. Kaming mga gagmay na mananagat iya mi gitagaan mi og panginabuhian alang sa among pamilya,” Tagulo said.
(I am very much thankful to the President for helping us. He also looked after small fishermen like me and ensured that we have a stable livelihood for our family.)
Aside from DA and BFAR, other government agencies such as the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC), Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC), Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), Philippine Fiber Industry Development Authority (PhilFIDA), Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA), and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) also handed various assistance to farmers and fisherfolks in the province who are affected by the El Niño phenomenon in the province.
Other assistance given were in the form of indemnity checks worth P15,861,327 as insurance for damaged crops, loan grants worth P52 million for two farmers’ associations, cash incentive for planting and replanting coconut trees, and cash aid under DOLE’s Tulong Panghanapbuhay para ating Displaced/Disadvantaged Workers (TUPAD) and DSWD’s Ayuda Para sa Kapos ang Kita Program (AKAP).
DTI and TESDA also provided livelihood toolkits and business kits to their identified farmer beneficiaries in the province.
The PhilFIDA also turned over two units of modified Abaca Spindle Stripping Machine with 75 units of modified stripping knives to five farmer recipients during the event.
The recipients were pre-identified by the respective NGAs and they represent farmers and fisherfolks associations in the province.
Gathered inside the Macias Sports Center were around 5,000 farmers, fisherfolks, and their families who are all recipients of PAFF.
Aside from P10,000 cash aid, the recipients also brought home five kilos of rice from the office of Speaker Martin Romualdez as additional benefit.
Convergence efforts to help farmers, fishermen
In his speech, President Marcos underscored that all the assistance extended to farmers and fisherfolks is a display of convergence among government agencies in helping agriculture workers recover from the ill-effects of the prolonged dry spell.
He added that the government recognizes their role in securing a stable food supply for every Filipino which is essential in nation-building.
“Kayo ang bida ngayon sa ating kwento ng tagumpay dahil sa bawat pagtatanim at pangingisda ninyo ay pinapanday din ninyo ang kinabukasang punong-puno ng pag-asa at pangako para sa lahat. Upang ipakita at ipadama ang aming pagkilala sa inyong kontribusyon sa ating bayan, handog po namin ang mga tulong na ito,” Marcos said.
(Today, you are the protagonists of our success story because in every crop you sow or fish that you harvest you are also building the nation’s promising future filled with hope for all. We offer to you these various interventions as a way of showing our recognition to your contribution to our nation.)
President Marcos also turned over P50 million additional cash assistance to the provincial government of Negros Oriental as augmentation fund to their programs geared towards improving the socio-economic conditions of farmers and fisherfolks.
The government distributed aid to 10,000 PAFF beneficiaries that day.
A separate payout was held at the nearby Mariano Perdices Coliseum, which was participated in by another set of 5,000 beneficiaries. (RAL/PIA7 Negros Oriental)
