Int’l jurist urges gov’t to honor pomologist

QUEZON, Nueva Ecija – An internationally renowned justice and human rights advocate has bewailed the lack of government recognition for famed pomologist Bernie Dizon, saying the latter would have long been recognized in other countries for his achievements.

Justice Romeo Capulong, president of the Public Interest Law Center (PILC) and United Nations-designated interim judge to the former Yugoslavian Republic, said Dizon has distinguished himself in his field yet the government appears to have failed to recognize his feat.

"If Dizon lives either in Thailand or China, he would have long been proclaimed a national treasure," Capulong observed, adding that the two countries bestow their outstanding citizens and agricultural performers with the title "National Treasure," the local equivalent of our "National Artist."

Capulong, a known human rights lawyer before his appointment as UN interim judge, hailed Dizon’s virtual "singular attempt" to promote multi-rooted propagation of high-value fruit trees as a prospective dollar-earner and top income-earner for the country’s farmers.

He said he has been spreading the gospel of Dizon’s technological breakthrough among his circle of friends. He said he has already convinced a friend in Candelaria,Quezon to use Dizon’s certified seedlings of durian, mango, pummelo and rambutan in his farm.

Dizon has modified top-working since 1995 and revolutionized it in big trees by cutting the crown of an old undesirable tree and graf-ting it with a scion of the desired variety at a distance of two feet in between shoots at the top of the crown.

He also "top-worked" several old mango trees in Capulong’s farm in Barangay San Miguel here. He grafted Capulong’s Batangas-strain carabao mango varieties with budsticks taken from the Thailand Chokanan, Guimaras, Queen Anne and Talaban species last December. Last month, the modified trees bore big fruits.

Last week, Capulong and Dizon led in the ceremonial harvest of the Dizon-acquired technology.

In spite of Dizon’s strings of successes in revolutionizing multi-rooted propagation, his feats were largely ignored by the National Government and even by so-called agriculture experts back home.

Capulong said he would ask Gov. Tomas Joson III to apply the Dizon formula in establishing tree nurseries in the 27 municipalities and five cities of the province.