Farmers blast Marcos Jr over corruption, neglect of agriculture sector

By Aaron Ernest Cruz
Bulatlat.com

MANILA –  After their week-long protest in front of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), peasant groups from different regions marched to Mendiola to mark the National Peasants Day today, Oct. 21.

Farmers from Negros, Southern Tagalog and Central Luzon slammed the administration of Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s neglect of the agricultural sector as well as the worsening corruption in the government. They decried the lack of accountability of public officials who are involved in the anomalous flood control projects. Coincidentally, Oct. 21 also marks the first month of the massive protests over the multi-billion peso flood control projects. 

Danilo Ramos, national chairperson of Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) stressed that despite promises of land reform and other programs to sustain the livelihood of the farmers, farmers are still suffering from landlessness and poverty.

“The taxpayers’ money is being used to fund the ‘fake’ flood-control projects and other billions of ‘unprogrammed funds’ that serve as the pork barrel of the president. Instead of genuine land reform, they resort to graft and corruption,” Ramos said.

Ramos said that for many years, the farmers’ struggles have not been resolved despite the enactment of a land reform program by different administrations. He said that the implementation of the Presidential Decree 27 of 1972 – land reform implemented during Ferdinand Marcos Sr’s administration – was bogus. The PD 27 was meant to distribute land to the tenant farmers who till their land.

Jenny Rapiz of Alyansa ng Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luzon (AMGL) stressed that farmers get the least to none help from the government even if they are the ones who produce food and feed millions of Filipinos.

Photo by Carlo Manalansan/Bulatlat

Rapiz condemned the inaction of Marcos Jr to the plight of the farmers. She said farmers as well as the consumers continue to suffer from high prices of agricultural products. “Why is there no funding for farmers? Instead of funding other departments where corruption is rampant, why not just fund the farmers’ (needs) to speed up production, feed all the farmers, and stop the reliance on imports.”

A worker at a sugarcane plantation in Negros, Elecal Piadocha, celebrated her 50th birthday joining the protest in Manila. 

During the week-long protest, Piadocha said they managed to have a dialogue with DAR officials where they asserted genuine land reform.  They also had a dialogue with the Department of Defense to halt the militarization of farmlands subjected to land conversion. Although they have succeeded to raise their concerns, she knows that steps to resolve these issues remain unsure.

Piadocha earns a piece-rate of P130 to P230 ($2.23 – $3.95). Her husband is also a farm worker and their combined income is barely enough to feed her five children. “We work from 6:00 am to 10:00 am tilling sugarcane and we will be back again from 1:00 pm until 5:00 pm,” she told Bulatlat. 

Piadocha expressed her frustration with the government saying that they are only demanding for just and right wages but instead of responding to their call, they face harassment from the state forces.

“We need to put an end to corruption and look at the situation of the farmers like me who put food on your table,” she said. (AMU, RVO)

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