President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. was true to his word.
That's how Quezon 1st district Rep. Wilfrido Mark Enverga described the significant budgetary increase that the executive branch has asked for the Department of Agriculture (DA) under the 2023 National Expenditure Program (NEP).
"Masayang masaya kami coming from an agricultural sector-district. Magandang balita po para sa ating magsasaka yung 39 percent ang inincrease ng DA (Coming from a agricultural sector-district, this makes us very happy. The 39 percent increase in the DA budget is good news for our farmers)," Enverga said during the weekly Ugnayan news forum at the House of Representatives Tuesday, Aug. 23.
"In general masayang masaya po tayo. Tumutoo po ang ating Pangulong Bongbong Marcos na kung saan nga number one po niya sa agenda po niya is food security (we're very happy. President Bongbong Marcos was true to his word and made number one on his agenda the country's food security), which I definitely am sure will be very much inclusive," he said.
Enverga is the House Committee on Agriculture chairman.
Quezon is an agricultural hub in the Philippines. It is a top producer of palay (unhusked rice), corn, fruits, and coconuts.
"Kami masaya kami kasi finally nabigyan ng pansin yung agricultural sector (We're happy because the agricultural sector has finally been noticed), it has been long been neglected)," Enverga added.
The DA's proposed budget in the 2023 NEP is P184.1 billion--an P81.6-billion increase from its 2022 NEP allocation.
The department's actual budget in 2022 based on the existing General Appropriations Act (GAA) is P132.2 billion.
Marcos is the concurrent secretary of the DA. He took on the role in order to prepare the agency for a looming food crisis.