Senator Kiko Pangilinan on Friday, Feb. 11 called on the Department of Agriculture (DA) to ramp up the launch of its planned activities in a bid to generate more jobs for the people.
Citing the P5-trillion national budget, Pangilinan said the people should "feel" the fund allocated for national government programs.
“Dapat taumbayan ang makikinabang, hindi ibubulsa ng iilan habang milyon-milyon sa ating mga kababayan ang walang makain at walang trabaho (The people should benefit from the fund. It must not go to the pockets of some while millions of Filipinos have no food to eat and are jobless)," he said in a statement.
"Dapat maramdaman ng mga magsasaka at mangingisda ang budget ng bayan (The fund should be felt by the farmers and fishermen)," he added, calling on the DA.
The opposition senator, who is also running for the vice presidency, made the remark as the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) released its data showing that the number of unemployed adults, or those aged 15 and above, in December 2021 stood at 3.27 million. This equated to an unemployment rate of 6.6 percent.
This was higher by over 100,000 compared to the November 2021 figure.
Pangilinan lamented that millions of Filipinos remain jobless despite eased restrictions against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
Pangilinan asserted that the DA must accelerate the use of its funds to fuel economic activity in the sector and provide employment opportunities to Filipinos.
He said funds for irrigation must be utilized to aid farmers in having better yields.
Pangilinan also called for better access to formal credit and financing with easy payment terms, crop insurance, and additional support mechanism such as post-harvest facilities, better roads and agricultural extension services.