Gov. Davide declares Farmers’ Day, gives P3.2M assistance

Interior Secretary Mar Roxas (center) pours corn seeds to test a corn mill machine as Gov. Hilario Davide III looks on during yesterday’s agri expo at the Capitol grounds. (CDN PHOTO/ JUNJIE MENDOZA)

Cebu Gov. Hilario Davide III declared yesterday, August 12, as Farmers’ Day and hailed the more-than-300,000 farmers in the province as “heroes of the land.”

The event was part of the month-long celebration of Cebu Province’s 446th founding anniversary.

“Today, we recognize the important role of our farmers who cultivate our farmlands to produce not only food for themselves, but also for us who are not farmers,” Davide addressed close to 500 farmers at the Capitol Social Hall.

Dr. Romulo Davide, Capitol consultant on agriculture and the governor’s uncle, suggested  holding  the event to recognize the contribution of farmers to the community.

Earlier, the provincial government distributed P3.2 million in agricultural equipment to various municipalities.

These included five 12-horsepower corn mills worth P100,000 each, 15 water pumps worth P25,000 each, 10 outdoor storage for seeds which cost P78,000 each, and moisture meters worth P14,500 each.

The budget for these equipment is part of the province’s Annual Investment Plan (AIP).

The Capitol also opened an exhibit of the best agricultural products from different local government units, including camote and banana chips from Ronda and pintos from Bogo City, among others.

The Capitol also recognized the 10 most outstanding farmers in the province for their successful farming practices like intercropping and the using of organic fertilizer.

They each received a P5,000 check yesterday.

Interior Secretary Manuel “Mar” Roxas, who was the event’s guest yesterday, saluted the farmers in his speech.

He told the farmers that they are the frontline in the government’s fight for freedom against hunger.

He assured Cebuano farmers of additional support in terms of equipment and trainings.

However, Jose Ruben, a farmer, said that majority of the farmers in the province has not felt the importance the government has given the agricultural sector.

He said he wanted the farmers’ assistance be given directly to them and not through the municipalities since this will become politicized.

He also asked that the provincial government provide trucks to the farmers to help them bring their produce from the farms to the markets.

“Kaysa atong gipalit nila og Suroy-Suroy (buses) sauna, ila na lang untang gipalit og truck pangkarga sa mga farm inputs sa mga mag-uuma,” he said.

(Instead of buying buses for Suroy-Suroy, they should first have bought trucks to help bring farmers’ produce to the market.)

On average, a farmer pays trucking companies P160 for every run just to deliver their products to the city.