By Manny Piñol
My worst fear unfolds before my eyes.
Cocolisap, the destructive insect which eats up coconut leaves and softer parts of the tree until it withers and dies, has flown out of the island of Basilan and is now starting to destroy coconut trees in mainland Sulu, the Zamboanga Peninsula and Caraga Region.
Yesterday, while flying over Basilan Island on my way to Jolo, Sulu, I saw the extent of the devastation of the coconut industry the Cocolisap all over the island.
While the initial report given to me by the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) officials in Basilan and Zamboanga said that 3 million out of the estimated 6 million trees are affected by the Cocolisap infestation, this was repudiated by my visual appreciation of the extent of the damage.
The Dept. of Agriculture team composed of myself, Executive Assistant Bong Piñol, Director Roy Abaya, technical assistant U Manalo, photographer Gian Carlo Luague and security officer SPO1 Fletcherlyn Pido saw from the air the diseased coconuts.
The whole coconut area we flew over looked like a mosaic of green with yellow dots which were actually the coconut trees on the verge of dying because of the Cocolisap infestation.
That was not the only depressing sight.
Travelling by land in Sulu with former Governor Sakur Tan and his son, incumbent Governor Totoh Tan, the DA team also saw diseased coconuts in between the towns of Jolo and Maimbung.
The sadder story was shared with me by agriculture officials who said that Cocolisap infestation has also started in at least two villages in the Western part of Zamboanga City – Cabaluay and Victoria.
From there it could spread to the whole Zamboanga Peninsula which is a coconut producing region.
Reports were also received on the presence of the insects in some parts of the Caraga Region comprising of the provinces of Agusan del Sur, Agusan del Norte, Surigao del Sur and Surigao del Norte.
Unless immediate action is taken, these pernicious insects could lead to the collapse of the coconut industry in the Southern Philippines and worsen poverty in the farming sector of the country.
How did the Cocolisap problem reached a stage where the Province of Basilan has already declared a State of Calamity to save its P2.2-billion industry?
Apathy and bureaucratic red tape, including a tedious and stringent procurement process are the culprits.
The first report of Cocolisap infestation was made by local officials of Basilan in 2012 and the PCA acted on it by ordering the purchase of a chemical solution to be used in trunk injections.
The intervention was targeted to save 300,000 trees.
Tedious procurement processes, according to PCA officials in Zamboanga City, delayed the delivery of the chemical solution.
By the time the supplies intended for 300,000 trees arrived, almost a million trees were already affected.
That minor bureaucratic red tape alone resulted in the destruction of over 3 million coconut trees in Basilan today, some of which are already beyond salvation.
Last night, I convened a meeting of the Regional Management Council for Agriculture in Zamboanga City which was attended by all agencies involved in agriculture, including PCA officials.
I told them that while the PCA is not directly under the DA Secretary, I cannot allow the situation to get from bad to worse.
A directive was issued to the Dept. of Agriculture regional officials to undertake massive efforts to support the PCA in containing the Cocolisap infestation in Basilan, Sulu, Zamboanga Peninsula and Caraga.
I have authorized the utilization of funds from the DA to immediately address the problem, never mind if it is the PCA which is supposed to shoulder it.
After all, the coconut farmers who will be impoverished by the devastation of the Cocolisap are Filipinos who believe that President Rody Duterte could act on their problems fast and quick.
My message to the members of the RMC last night was: “Stop the finger-pointing and the blame game. Think outside of the box and come up with strategies to deliver help fast and avoid getting mired in bureaucratic red tape.”
(Photos of the Cocolisap devastated coconut farms in Basilan taken from two Huey helicopters flying over the island enroute to Jolo, Sulu and the Regional Management Team meeting in Zamboanga City to discuss the coconut industry concerns by Gian Carlo Luague, AFID.)
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