Biyaheng Bukid Day 11 DUTCH ENGINEER’S ADVOCACY TO BRING WATER TO VILLAGES

By Manny Piñol

When he first sent me an email inviting me to Negros Occidental, I did not realise that the name Auke Idzenga was a white man.

Arriving at the hotel in Bacolod City Sunday morning, Auke (pronounced ‘Awk’) surprised my staff when he spoke fluent Hiligaynon, the language of the Ilonggos.

I also did not know that Auke, a Dutch marine engineer married to a Filipina in Bacolod City for the last 30 years, was actually a Ramon Magsaysay Awardee for his persistent efforts to bring water to remote communities of the country.

Auke is actually not just the “ram pump water man” in Negros and other provinces. He is also the Lemon Grass (Tangled) farming advocate who has led the production of essential oil from the aromatic grass growing wild in the countryside.

Visiting his working place in Mansilingan, Bacolod City, I was dumbfounded to see piles of plastic pipes and machines and equipment used in fabricating the Hydraulic Ram Pump, a mechanical device which uses the law of hydraulics to pump water up to an elevation of 250 meters without any fuel-powered engine.

This is actually a 100-year-old technology and I saw this in the Galilee Farm of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate (OMI) missionaries in Bugwak, Antipas, North Cotabato which was managed by the late Fr. Yves Caroff when I was Governor of the province.

Auke’s work is impressive because it showed the dedication of a man to an advocacy to bring water to remote mountain villages neglected by government and to lift people out of poverty by producing essential oil out of Tanglad or Lemon Grass.

After he informed me that Coca Cola Philippines was supporting his efforts, I immediately called up lawyer Adel Tamano, who is vice president of the huge multi-national soft drinks maker and received a commitment of bigger support upon my assumption as Secretary of Agriculture.

I intend to work closely with Auke because I believe that through the Hydraulic Ram Pumps, we will be able to enable mountain communities to be productive.

With the Hydraulic Ram Pumps which does not require any expense and operates 24/7, mountain communities could be turned into vegetable producers.

In fact, upland communities with Hydraulic Ram Pumps could even produce rice for the consumption of the families in the remote villages.

This simple mechanical equipment could help in realising the vision of President Rody Duterte to lift people in the remotes areas out of poverty.