“ACPC Financial Services?” – Good! “Farmers’ “Financial Management?” – Bad!

 

If you know what you need to do, you will keep doing it.

On page 119 of the coffee-table book The Filipino Farmer Is Bankable, the volume I produced for the Agricultural Credit Policy Council (ACPC) to celebrate its Silver Anniversary on 25 April 2012, can be found these entries:

Vision
The ACPC is the institution on agri credit policy and program development that promotes sustainable and effective delivery of financial services in the countryside.

Mission
To develop and advocate agri credit policies and orchestrate programs that would promote farmers’ and fishers’ access to sustained financial services.

9 years later, on the ACPC website, ACPC.gov.ph, word-for-word the exact same Vision and Mission Statements[1] appear. What does that signify?

To me, it shows that the ACPC, after clearly defining its role in the nationwide development of PH Agriculture as an agency of the Department of Agriculture(DA), has remained steadfast in its institutional commitments. I find that unusual for any DA agency – and I must congratulate the ACPC for institutional clarity, commitment, and concretization!

Note that ACPC’s Vision is two-pronged: (a) development of sustainable policies & programs on agri credit, and (b) effective delivery of financial services to the countryside.

Other agencies may mention the word “sustainable” in their public statements and in the news reports emanating from them, but “sustainability” is seldom mentioned and even more seldom measured in their activities. 

I am referring to the sustainability of the enterprise of the small farmer. The Filipino farmers are historically non-viable or non-economically sound, and it will take a long time for the DA, even with the outstanding Team Captainship of Secretary of Agriculture William Dar, to help their business become economically viable, not to mention their farming environmentally sound.

“Your credit is good, but we need cash” is a sign in many a Pinoy variety store. The great majority of Pinoy farmers are always in need of cash because they do not manage their financial resources, relying on the Fast Cash of the moneylender, notwithstanding the charge of 20% for any loan. Always on Fast Cash, the farmer pays over-the-counter for his seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides – and these are his major expenses.

What to do? All farmer trainings, actual or virtual, have to be overhauled and designed with financial management inputted from beginning to end.

Here are instances for farmers to practice financial management:

Loans – Be a member of a cooperative; you will enjoy affordable loans.
Seeds – (1) Buy the variety appropriate to the season and field, with recorded high yield. (2) Sow only 20 kg of expensive hybrid seeds to grow seedlings for transplanting, not 40-50 kg.
Fertilizers – Do not over-fertilize.
Pesticides – Do not over-spray. Better, practice multiple cropping or trap cropping, zero pesticides.
Marketing – Your cooperative will sell your produce when the price is right!

The ACPC is for Financial Services and can only do so much. The farmer himself must be taught Financial Management, and this is the duty of those public & private trainers of farmers.

Now then, business-minded farmers, may their tribe increase!@517

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[1]http://210.5.72.214/acpc/about/vision-mission/

Start Economic Recovery, Start Public & Private Partnership – End The Lockdown Now!

Is the Philippine Department of Agriculture (DA) ready to fulfill its own nationwide agricultural responsibilities once all kinds of quarantines are down? Yes, under the leadership and planning-ahead head of Secretary William Dar.

Never. In my 20 years of blogging, after thousands upon thousands of short & long essays published online, I never wrote in favor of an advertisement – until now. I am looking at the Facebook ad of CitizenWatch Philippineswith the headline, “Public And Private Partnership Is The Key Towards Sustainable Development” (upper image above). And the lock to open it today is to end the lockdown!

CitizenWatch is saying:

We call on the government to work with the private sector in creating sustainable initiatives that will fortify a future-proofed Philippines beyond this pandemic.

"Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country[1]" – Charles E Weller. Today, we must love our country, all of it! Now is the time for all good men to come to the aid of their country under lockdown!

Here is CitizenWatch Philippines telling us:

More than a year into the pandemic, the Philippines has yet to revive its ailing economy. In spite of this, the government maintains its stringent mobility restrictions, which hamper business operations throughout the country, especially in the National Capital Region.  Despite branding the current restrictions as a “bubble,” no differences can separate it from being a lockdown wherein businesses are only allowed to operate in limited capacities. This in turn will result into further economic slump…

Michael Beltransays, “The global crisis is first and foremost a public health issue[2]” (12 May 2020, “The Duterte Administration’s Covid-19 Response Marries Incompetence With Militarism,” The Diplomat). No. But continued lockdown has made it an economic crisis where everyone is losing! It is bad for everyone, but more so the unemployed and the poor. 

Without the lockdown, private sector to the rescue!

It is clear that after a year, no significant progress has been achieved… The most recent data from Pulse Asia survey (reveal)… Among the Most Urgent National Concerns are controlling inflation (43%), increasing the pay of workers (34%), providing assistance or subsidy to those who lost their livelihood and jobs because of Covid-19 pandemic (28%), reducing poverty (26%) and creating more jobs (26%).

And for private-public partnership, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is ready with its 12 Key Strategies for inclusive development, specifically #8 being “Mobilization & Empowerment Of Partners To Attain Scale” (undated, “The One DA Holistic Approach: Twelve (12) Key Strategies[3].” DA.gov.ph).

CitizenWatch also reports:

Pulse Asia also showed the Most Urgent Personal Concerns for Filipinos. First on the list is “to stay healthy and avoid illnesses” (74%); second is “at least to be able to have enough to eat every day” (47%); and third is “(to) have a secure/ well-paying job or source of income” (47%).

Please do not simply pray and pray for us Filipinos – end the lockdown so that we all can do something concrete for everyone!@517

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[1]https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/12/now_is_the_time_for_all_good_men_to_come_to_the_aid_of_their_country.html

[2]https://thediplomat.com/2020/05/the-philippines-pandemic-response-a-tragedy-of-errors/

[3]https://www.da.gov.ph/the-one-da-holistic-approach-twelve-12-key-strategies/

Historical PH 1st Holy Mass: Mazaua Or Limasawa? Fr Amalla Vs Maria Serena Diokno Vs Ambeth Ocampo – And The Priest Is Right!

We Filipinos celebrate 500 years of Christianity today Wednesday, 31 March 2021, Christianity brought to pagans by Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan sailing the seas for Spain. The historical question is: Where was the first Holy Mass celebrated: “Limasawa” (in Leyte) or “Mazaua” (in Butuan)?

Catholic priest Fr Joesilo C Amalla has just published the book (above), An Island They Called Mazaua, that argues the island of “Mazaua” in Butuan is the “true site of first Holy Mass in the Philippines[1]” and not “Limasawa” in Leyte (ANN, 07 January 2021, Manila Times). The declaration and discussion are made by Butuan-based Fr Amalla in his 644-page book. Among other things, he writes:

The truth is that the prevailing state- and church-affirmation and multiple reaffirmations of the island of Limasawa as the site of that first Holy Mass have no factual, historical and geographic (bases) whatsoever nor any shred of evidentiary support from cartographic studies, navigational information, and maritime history.

Limasawa is bogus! We Filipinos are celebrating 31 March 2021 as the quincentennial day of the very first Easter Sunday mass, in 1521, in the Philippines – we have a problem there: Fr Amalla is debunking the claim of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) that it occurred in Limasawa.

In reply, the NHCP said:

We reject the recently published book An Island They Called Mazaua (The Truth About The Site Of The First Holy Mass In The Philippines), 2021, as substantially misleading and methodologically erroneous. As historians and scholars, we therefore consider its findings and conclusions unacceptable.

Ah, but as a Roman Catholic myself and a creative writer who must deal with logic and ill-logic, I agree with Fr Amalla’s historical analysis – it is the NHCP’s history that is misleading and erroneous!

7 years ago, Vicente Calibo de Jesus published a petition addressed to Maria Serena I Diokno, then NHCP head, titled “Stop Peddling The Limasawa ‘First Mass’ Hoax,” saying among other things:

The first recorded Christian mass was held on Easter Sunday, 31 March 1521 at a little island-port named Mazaua. Two identical accounts report this event, by eyewitness Antonio Pigafetta (1523) and Antonio de Herrera y Tordesillas (1601). "Masawa" is a word found only in Butuanon and its scion, Tausog, out of 181 Philippine languages. It means “brilliant light and crystal clear.”

Earlier, Fr Amalla says that in 2008, he could not convince National Historical Institute (now NHCP) head Ambeth Ocampoof the validity of Mazaua over Limasawa. He further says:

This is urgent. Hundreds of millions of pesos are being earmarked and already being spent by government, eg, Department of Tourism, the local government of Southern Leyte, etc, in preparation for the 500th anniversary of the "first mass" in 2021. We're not even putting in what the Catholic Church will spend. This is money from our poor people. Let it not be squandered honoring a ghost event at Limasawa.

In the Philippines, the first Holy Mass was held in Mazaua, period.@517

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[1]https://www.manilatimes.net/2021/01/07/campus-press/new-book-asserts-mazaua-island-in-butuan-true-site-of-first-holy-mass-in-the-philippines/823943/

Science Is On The Top Of A UPLB Professor’s Mind. So, It Asks: “Is The Continued Quarantine Justified?”

Belated “Happy Birthday,” Mr President! (28 March 2021). Sorry to spoil your birthday, but the World Bank has spoken: “PHL Reliance On Prolonged Lockdowns Caused Economic Deterioration – WB[1]” (Louise Maureen Simeon, 27 March 2021, The Philippine Star). Carolina Figueroa-Geron, who shared that on Facebook; I read somewhere someone's wishes, “May our Lord Jesus Christ enlighten our darkness! God bless us!”

Miss Louise quotes the World Bank as saying:

The Philippines relied more on prolonged restrictions on mobility rather than an effective test-based strategy. Countries with greater quarterly growth contraction in 2020 had higher infection rates, imposed more stringent mobility restrictions, had more highly indebted governments and were more dependent on earnings from tourism.

Because of mass testing, mobility restrictions were not as severe, resulting in gross domestic product growth for Vietnam (2.9 percent), China (2.3 percent) and Laos (0.4 percent) in 2020. Cambodia’s GDP also contracted, but only by 3.1 percent, and Malaysia by 5.6 percent. The Philippine economy, on the other hand, shrank 9.5 percent, its worst in several decades and the sharpest drop in the region.

Yet, as a science writer, I am more interested in logic than statistics, so I leave the World Bank news to you, and I concentrate on what retired UPLB chemistry professor Carlito “Charlie” Barril (inset image above) says on Facebook on the lockdown. A UPLB alumnus, I agree with him.

Mr Barril says, “DoH data show there is actually no Covid pandemic in RP,” giving 5 proofs (facts), which I edit a little:

Fact #1. DoH data show that more than 98% of reported cases were non-Covid, being mild and asymptomatic. The remaining 2%? Mostly pneumonia, influenza, asthma, etc.

Fact #2. Every Sunday, a big number of recoveries is reported from the ranks of mild and asymptomatic. Today, 28 March 2021, DoH reported total recoveries of 22,000. The highest total recoveries of 40,392 was reported 16 August 2020.

Fact #3. After one year, the number of deaths reported is just 13,170. Even if all these deaths were attributed to Covid, THIS IS VERY LOW compared to the annual deaths of more than 60,000 (2016 data) for flu and pneumonia. Yet we do not lockdown the people due to these diseases.

Fact #4. Total number for RP of 5,705 cases/M is way below the level considered epidemic or pandemic. RP is just 6.3% of that of the USA with 90,853 cases/M. If the mild and asymptomatic cases were removed, the value for RP becomes even lower at 0.13% of that of the USA. This comparison becomes even more significant considering that RP’s population density is much higher than that of the USA.

Fact #5. Another indicator that the Covid situation in RP is just hysteria is the percentage of recovery, which is as high as 93% for RP compared to 64% for the USA and 70% for the world.

Based on the above facts, it is clear that there is actually no Covid pandemic in RP and the continued quarantine is therefore not justified!@517

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[1]https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2021/03/27/2087356/philippines-reliance-prolonged-lockdowns-caused-economic-deterioration-wb

The Woman’s Role In The Developing History Of PH Agriculture?

How should we measure the Filipino woman’s role in PH Agriculture? In one word, significant. But if you isolate it, not!

From Cagayan De Oro City, JC Anito from the Department of Agriculture (DA) RFO X reports: “DA NorMin Takes Part In 2021 Nat'l. Women's Month Celebration” (Facebook sharing): “(DA-10) took part in the Serbisyo Para Kay Juana National Convergencein celebration of the Women’s Month in Cagayan de Oro City.” (“Juana” is any PH female, from male counterpart “Juan.”) On Thursday, 25 March, DA X distributed 1,020 packets of 5-in-1 assorted vegetable seeds totaling P132,600 in three variants of culinary purposes: pinakbet, chopsuey, and sinigang, to the participants. JC did not include the names of vegetables included in each packet, but it’s the giving that matters, not the gift.

Receivers of the freeseeds included women’s organizations, farmers, solo parents, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, micro, small & medium enterprises, indigenous people, city scholarship parents, and community drug rehabilitation program recipients. Quite a mix of women there!

National, yes. JC says that, in her speech, DA Assistant Secretary for Agribusiness & Marketing, Kristine Y Evangelista “emphasized the significance of women in nation-building, particularly their potential contribution in boosting the agri-fishery sector.”

Note how Ms Kristine puts it – “contribution in boosting” – women are participating in a common endeavorwith men. So, to me, instead of a display of gender equality; rather, it is a display of the sense of community:

The growth of farming families is notabout gender equality – it is whether roles are being played appropriately for the good of all, especially the family.

JC quotes Brigida Ossa Cadiz, President of the Solo Parents Association of Barangay Iponan saying more or less (original in Visayan):

We are very thankful to DA for including us solo parents to receive assistance and for also recognizing us women as part of the society, that despite our vulnerabilities we can use this (intervention) as a tool in providing for our respective families to the best of our ability. (JC’s translation)

JC says, “The activity served as an avenue to tackle issues affecting women which (call) for tangible actions towards gender equality.” Sorry, but to me, gender equality is not the design of God – as long as the females and males live in the same society, the call is for gender responsibility. And no, the gender responsibilities are not equal – they are parallel and complementary.

JC explains the why of the occasion: “The convergence initiative is in support (of the) whole-of-government approach thru the Office of Senator Lawrence Go, together with partner cluster agencies” such as the Department of Social Welfare & Development (DSWD), Department of Health (DoH), Department of Trade & Industry (DTI), Department of Labor & Employment (DoLE), and Technical Education & Skills Development Authority (TESDA). Exactly! I say. DSWD, DoH, DTI, DoLE, TESDA –

Yes! Even as we have the “whole-of-government” we must have what I call the “whole-of-family” approach, husbands and wives and solo parents included.

I say, “Let us celebrate “The Whole-of-Family Approach to PH Agriculture!”@517

How To Turn “Earth Hour“ Into “Earth Power“ – The Ultimate Power Trip!

What you did yesterday, in Manila Saturday, 27 March 2021, was switch off the lights for 1 hour, 8:30 to 9:30 PM. I have another non-conformist, earth-shaking idea: Not “Turn off your lights” but “Turn on your power!”
(spinning world image[1] from Dreamstime.com)

Switching off the light for 1 hour 1 day 1 year – that’s saving gigawatts of electrical energy worldwide. We Earthlings can do much better than that – save on power every time, everywhere!

That’s what I call “Earth Power.” To be celebrated by everyone even in broad daylight during the whole year.

Since I am an Agriculturist, let me show you how power works in Agriculture – there is Power from Knowledge!

(1)   Power from Coops –
We have the farmer as a member of a cooperative that can assist him in many ways. The loans are available at affordable interests – the loan sharks will then lose their power! Additionally, the coop will show extra power to the farmer in avoiding expenses.

(2)   Power from Certified Seeds –
Teaching and/or training him, we ingrain in each farmer the habit of buying certified rice seeds, whether inbred or hybrid. He gets to know technologies & systems to ensure he gets a high yield for every planting. Lower costs, higher returns.

(3)   Power from Transplanting & Direct Seeding –
For Transplanting: Each farmer learns how to take care of seedlings on the seedbed, the day to transplant them, and how. For Direct Seeding: We teach each farmer direct seeding, saving on nursery bed care and transplanting.

(4)   Power from Square Planting –
In transplanting or direct seeding, single seedlings are planted, at least 25 cm by 25 cm in-between, not the usual careless planting. This will cut cost by less, and increase yields by more. Single seedlings will grow more tillers – and it is the tillers that produce the panicles that produce the grains for harvest.

(5)   Power from Mixed Farming –
We show how interplanting with other crops, mixed planting, intercropping or trap cropping will save him from spending on pesticides. The entomologists call it “Integrated Pest Management;” I call it “Good Food.”

(6)   Power from Harvesting and Postharvest Handling –
The coop will save for each farmer by renting out the combine harvester for harvesting his rice, and a solar-powered or mechanical dryer to dry his grains to the desired 14% moisture. The coop’s warehouse will provide grain storage when and as long as necessary.

(7)   Power from Marketing –
The cooperative will help the farmer bring the produce from farm to warehouse, displayed by images or digitally. If the farmer needs cash at this point, he can always turn to the coop for another affordable loan. Meanwhile, the produce stays at the coop warehouse, waiting for an opportune time to be sold, when “the price is right.” 

And the leader of this new movement, “Turn On Earth Power!” who will it be? I’m thinking of PH Secretary of Agriculture William Dar. A science servant leader of local and international experiences, and a proven achiever; he’ll know what to do!@517

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[1]https://www.dreamstime.com/royalty-free-stock-photo-wireless-energy-surrounding-earth-image20258245

Village Heroes – The Need For PH Journalism To Actively Support Agriculture

 

Bayanihan – The above image shows the earliest national heroes of the Philippines. Today, I’m calling on village heroes in communication for development, journalists out to move people to change the lives in the villages one good deed at a time! People working together to help their community, not just themselves. 
(Bayanihan image[1] from Nationalnews.com)

Why don’t we have in the Philippines digital and print media field journalists & columnists all-out supporting the small-scale and large-scale efforts of government to solve the problems of Agriculture and move it forward to bring favorable & sustainable changes to the lives of farmers and fishers, without exacting irreparable damage to the environment?

I am not going to identify the journalists who write nothing but to try to prove that some government officials are lying, or worse. With your journalism dedicated 100% to anti-bad government, you have nothing left for pro-good government. Not only that – you equate all government actions as against the interests of the people!

Since I am an agriculturist, teacher and blogger, I will concentrate on the journalism that is good for the farmers and fishers as seen in the plans, programs and projects of the Department of Agriculture (DA):

Lacking!

Why is there no thinking journalism on the “New Thinking for Agriculture” that Secretary of Agriculture William Dar proclaimed on Day One, 05 August 2020, when PRRD appointed him? Why no follow-up journalism on any one or combination of the “8 Paradigms” that accompanied the New Thinking?

(1) Modernization;
(2) Industrialization;
(3) Promotion of Exports;
(4) Consolidation of Small- And Medium-Sized Farms;
(5) Infrastructure Development;
(6) Higher Budget & Investment;
(7) Legislative Support; and
(8) Roadmap Development.

Subsequently, why is there no journalism on the “OneDA 12 Key Strategies Transforming Philippine Agriculture”? (See my essay in my blog: “PH Secretary Of Agriculture Minding Facebook, Maximizing His Media Of Exposure[2]” 03 March 2021, Asa Ka Pa!.)

Philippine journalism needs a revolution today!

Ramon R Tuazon says (ncca.gov.ph/about-ncca):

The post-war era to pre-martial law period (1945-1972) is called the Golden Age of Philippine journalism. The Philippine press began to be known as “the freest in Asia.”

Press freedom does not yet promote positive communication for development!

PH journalism has not graduated from that which the Americans brought to Philippine shores. ANN says (Author Not Named, 23 May 2015, Philippine Press History): “Founded in 1964, the Philippine Press Institute (PPI) was organized “to foster the development and improvement of journalism in the country.” Towards this objective, the PPI published in 1965 “Law Of The Press: A PPI Manual,” and in 1967 “Clear Effective Writing: A PPI Manual.”

Development of journalism, not country. Nothing said about whether journalism was for helping the government pursue programs and projects for the good of the people.

So, what the editors thought were good for the paper was good enough. Let the people be damned!?

What we desperately need is journalism campaigning for Bayanihan moving a while village, town, or province in terms of improving lives, improving sustainability of villages and villagers!@517

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[1]https://www.thenationalnews.com/arts-culture/filipino-artists-from-ugnayang-sining-tomasino-art-collective-have-work-displayed-in-uae-1.102874

[2]https://asakaparin.blogspot.com/2021/03/ph-secretary-of-agriculture-minding.html