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Tarlac City – -“ Totoong nakakalungkot ang pagkakapasa ng Rice Tariffication Law o RA 11203. Sa aking pananaw (ito) ay lubhang pahihirapan nito ating mga magsasaka.”
Thus, said then Mayor Cristy Angeles to the plight of thousands of farmers of this city who were hit by low price of palay, 193 of them were awarded recently P15,000 cash grants each to alleviate their financial suffering.
Republic Act 11203, or the “Act Liberalizing the Importation, Exportation and Trading of Rice, Lifting for the Purpose the Quantitative Import Restriction on Rice”, was passed into law last February 19, 2019.
The law brought into the country millions of tons of imported rice and resulted in the over-supply of the primary food of Filipinos.
However, the consequent over-supply of rice resulted also in the refusal of rice and palay traders to buy newly harvested palay at the usual P18-P20 per kilo.
The palay produced by the farmers in this city this harvest season, and elsewhere in the country, were bought at only P7-P12 per kilo.
Farmers here, thus, suffered untold “financial losses and massive social distress” many of which sought the assistance of mayor Angeles.
The P15,000 financial assistance given to 193 farmers is under the “Expanded Survival Recovery Program” of the Land Bank of the Philippines.
“Alam naming kulang na kulang ito (P15,000 financial assistance) para ma-solusyunan ang dinaranas na kahirapan ngayon ng ating mga libo-libong magsasaka. Ganon pa man, pinapasalamatan na rin natin ang tulong na ito ng Land Bank. Gumagawa pa kami ng mga hakbang at mga program para matulungan ang mga kapatid nating magsasaka na na-apektuhan ng RA 11203”, said Angeles.
In a recent dialogue with local farmer leaders, mayor Angeles expressed her sympathy to the farmers’ plight of being forced to sell their produce at very low price and promised all she can do to help the farmers.
“Bagaman hindi kami Diyos na makagagawa ng milagro, gagawin ko at ng buong Sangguniang Panlungsod ang lahat upang makatulong sa ating mga magsasaka. Makakaasa kayo na kasama niyo kaming mag-iisip ng paraan upang maibsan ang hirap na dulot ng batas na ito (RA 11203)”, mayor Angeles told the farmer leaders./Nelson Bolos