The country can expect more research and development projects for agriculture and other technologies that would benefit Filipino farmers and fishermen once Partido Reporma presidential candidate Panfilo “Ping” Lacson and running mate Senate President Vicente “Tito” Sotto III get the people’s mandate following the May 9 national elections.
Lacson and Sotto stressed their support for the growth of the farming sector following campaign sorties in Nueva Ecija and Laguna, both food-producing provinces, whose farmers and fishermen have suffered under the effects of rampant agricultural smuggling and the COVID-19 pandemic.
The longtime public servants also visited the University of the Philippines Los Banos campus in Laguna on Tuesday, lauding the state learning institution for leading the way in R&D projects in agriculture and biotechnology.
Lacson noted in his dialogue with small agricultural businessmen in Sta. Rosa, Nueva Ecija that he and Sotto prefer to discuss issues directly with them so they get a pulse of the real situation on the ground, which are not apparent from a national level and would help them prepare legislation or government policy once they are elected as President and Vice President, respectively.
After their Nueva Ecija sortie, the presidential duo resumed their regular campaign activities to the cities and municipalities of Santa Cruz, Los Baños, Biñan, Calamba and Santa Rosa in Laguna province.
Joining the Lacson-Sotto tandem in their Laguna sortie were Partido Reporma senatorial bets Dr. Minguita Padilla and retired Gen. Guillermo Eleazar as well as adopted candidates Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Piñol, Gregorio 'Gringo’ Honasan, and Joseph Victor ‘JV’ Ejercito.
The team visited several public markets and held a town hall meeting with around 500 people at the Santo Angel Sur covered court where Lacson and Sotto sought their help by voting them into office. They intend to ‘fix the government’ by getting rid of corruption and instituting budget reforms.
With better research and development programs as endorsed by the government, Filipino food growers would be able to equal or surpass the production of outstanding farmers such as Danilo Bolos of Nueva Ecija, who has produced 300 cavans or 16.5 tons of rice on just one hectare of farmland, Lacson noted.
Bolos was among the farmers present in the dialog organized by former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel “Manny” Pinol, a guest candidate for senator on the Lacson-Sotto ticket.
“E, ‘di ba, tina-target lang natin ‘pag naka-100 (cavans) parang outstanding feat, pero ito, na-surpass niya (Bolos) ‘yon by producing 300 cavans or 16.5 tons [Isn’t it that our farmers often target just 100 (cavans per harvest) and consider that an outstanding feat, but here, Bolos surpassed it by producing 300 cavans or 16.5 tons). So, ‘yon ang parang standard na na-establish na dapat maabot ng mga ibang magsasaka. Kung ganoon tayo, pwede tayong maging rice sufficient). So that’s the standard established that our other farmers should be able to reach, If it’s like that, then we can be rice sufficient),’’ Lacson, a former Philippine National Police (PNP) chief.
An engineer who worked for over two decades in Saudi Arabia, Bolos has farmed for over 30 years, and registered 339.81 cavans of palay (unhusked rice) per hectare in the 2020 cropping season, according to a Philippine News Agency report.
He was among thousands of farmers who joined the "Masaganang Ani 300" (MA300), a program launched by hybrid rice producer SL Agritech, and said he joined the program to prove that hybridization along with modern farming technology promises a future to young people.
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