Waylaid by bureaucracy! ‘Food Boats,’ FTI Revival Proposed In 2017, 2018

The expected reaction by my critics to the reforms I am proposing now for Philippine Agriculture and Fisheries is “Naging Agriculture Secretary ka, bakit hindi mo ginawa?”

First, the reality of Agriculture and Fisheries is that you cannot overhaul it in just three years.

Kung mag-introduce ka nga lang ng bagong variety ng niyog, it will take five to six years bago mo matikman ang buko and this was what I had emphasized in my verbal jousts with the Economic Managers who wanted Agriculture to consistently grow at 2% per year.

Second, mabagal talaga mag-adjust ang burokrasiya sa mga makabagong ideya at proyekto.

Perfect example was when I proposed that each DA Regional Office should procure a drilling rig for our Solar-Powered Small Irrigation projects.

Pinagsabihan kami ng review committee na hindi daw kasama sa equipment menu ng Agriculture ang drilling rigs.

The National Food Repositioning Strategy was among the reforms I introduced at ang proof of concept nito was the series of DA Tienda activities held in Metro Manila which offered farm products to urban consumers at farm gate prices.

As early as 2017, I proposed for inclusion in the 2018 budget the procurement of two refrigerated boats to be built in Navotas to facilitate the transport of highly-perishable goods, including marine products, from remote areas of the country to the urban centers.

It did not fly through the gauntlet called the DBCC or the Development Budget Coordinating Committee which decided which projects should be prioritized and given funding.

Without the DBCC endorsement, the proposal will never make it to the President’s Budget to be submitted to Congress for funding.

The revival of the Food Terminal, Inc., a government corporation under the National Food Authority, was discussed after NFA was transferred back to the DA in September 2018.

By June 2019, after my publicized collision with the Economic Managers over the Rice Tariffication Law, I resigned as Secretary of Agriculture.

There is a need for critical programs like the National Food Repositioning Program through the revival of the FTI to be institutionalized through legislation.

Kung usual department recommendation lang, it will have difficulty sailing through a bureaucracy which I have long likened to a lumbering elephant with jaundiced eyes.

#GovernanceIsCommonSense!

#KungGustoMaramingParaan!

(Attached to this article is a post on the proposed Food Boat which I made in November 2017.)