Sen. Villar reminds farmers to be less dependent on coconut

CARIGARA, Leyte, March 30 (PNA) -– Senator Cynthia Villar has called Yolanda-hit farmers anew to venture into intercropping and livestock raising and not just depend on coconut to rise above challenges.

Villar, chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture and Food, said the only way for coconut farmers to recover is to replant fallen trees, but it takes six to seven years for a new tree to be productive.

“In the meantime, they can plant vegetables and other crops. We should not just rely our future on coconut. It is in addition and not a main source of our income,” Villar told reporters.

The lady senator, who was in this town on Monday as commencement speaker at the Eastern Visayas State University satellite campus here, said she’s been roaming around Yolanda-hit areas and encourage farmers to look for other ways to raise their income.

 

“What I cited about the intercropping of coconut farmers is just one of them. And this also includes livelihood diversification, disaster risk reduction, environmental resilience and tapping alternative agricultural procedures and processes,” she said.

Meanwhile, Villar is pushing for passage of comprehensive law on the use of coco levy funds to make sure that this will really benefit coconut farmers.

Villar said that there are some issues that should be clarified in order for the Senate to pass a “good law.” 

“I want the law to be clarified on the budget of PCA (Philippine Coconut Authority), projected income of coco levy funds and where to use it. We don’t want to pass a stupid law because it will not solve the problem,” she pointed out. 

The legislator noted that the PCA budget was reduced to PHP1.5 billion this year from PHP4 billion a year ago as government expects more earnings from coco levy assets.

“Coco levy fund income will be used for the benefit of farmers. It should be an addition and not in lieu of PCA budget,” she emphasized.

“What if the coco levy fund will not earn? Whatever is the income of coco levy fund will be an addition to PCA’s budget. Otherwise, we are not helping coconut farmers,” Villar added.

The coco levy funds were forcibly collected from coconut farmers for more than nine years during the martial law period under President Ferdinand Marcos, supposedly for investments in the coconut industry.

The funds were allegedly diverted to various financial instruments by his cronies. The government sequestered the funds after the fall of the Marcos presidency in the people power uprising of 1986. (PNA)
FFC/SQM