MANILA, Philippines — With nearly every facet of the Department of Agriculture criticized and subjected to tough questions from lawmakers during the House’s budget deliberations on Wednesday, one solon had thought to ask: Does your secretary know all this?
Everything from the agency’s low budget utilization to unfinished projects related to food security was explained by DA officials and heads of attached agencies to the House lawmakers — many of whom brought up concerns of farmers in their districts — during the over five-hour hearing into the DA’s proposed 2024 budget.
But for House Senior Deputy Minority Leader Raul Daza (Samar), President and DA chief Ferdinand Marcos Jr. may not have known how to parry the lawmakers’ inquiries into how the DA’s budget has been used over the past years.
“Would the president know that the unutilized appropriations for (the DA in) 2022 is P6.7 billion? Does he know that your unutilized appropriations for 2023 are P36 billion? What has he said about that?” Daza said.
He knows and has been working with the other departments concerned, said DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban.
“Does he know the DA made commitments to the House which were not complied?” Daza asked the DA official.
“I don’t know,” Panganiban said.
“That’s exactly my point. For you to do a better service of this country, you really need to recommend to the president to find a full-time secretary who will face us daily, weekly, monthly,” Daza said.
Panganiban also told the House panel that Marcos was not present in the two group meetings that the DA officials have had in the last six months.
“So in the last three months, let’s say the last six months, you've had two meetiings with the undersecretaries. How many of those two meetings was the president present?” Daza asked Panganiban.
“None,” Panganiban replied.
Panganiban, however, added that he meets the president twice a week and relays his concerns to the other undersecretaries.
With a disclaimer that he maintains the “highest respect” for Marcos Jr., Daza said that the many problems plaguing the agriculture department should be solved with the appointment of a full-time secretary.
“I think that's one glaring problem. (These are) the disadvantages of having the president lead the department. For a department with so many issues and problems, I don't think its good governance personally,” Daza said.
Similarly, Rep. Raoul Manuel (Kabataan Partylist) said that the country’s efforts to attain rice self-sufficiency could only be achieved with a full-time agriculture secretary.
Manuel earlier questioned DA officials over the department’s long-term solution to the country’s reliance on imports, quipping that the DA could soon be called the Department of Angkat (Import).
“For DA to really function, because it might soon be called the Department of Angkat to have long-term solutions, we need a full-time Agriculture Secretary,” Manuel said.
Unfinished projects
Daza’s line of questioning came after the DA officials faced a barrage of questions from lawmakers on the utilization of the DA budget and other unfinished projects promised to their constituents in the districts.
For instance, Rep. David Suarez (Quezon, 2nd District) pointed out the “dismal performance” of the National Dairy Authority (NDA) in improving the country’s milk self-sufficiency while also bringing up an “unfulfilled promise” by the DA to dairy farmers in Quezon.
A representative from the NDA said that local milk production has only accounted for 1% of all milk produced in the country and that this has been the situation for years.
Suarez said this is “unacceptable” as the DA has yet to provide dairy farmers from Sariaya, Quezon their promised housing and foraging areas or cowsheds.
“That just goes to show — 1% throughout the years — but here you have a program that's supposed to benefit the dairy industry, but you did not fulfill the project,” Daza said.
A multi-million complex in Sariaya that the DA had envisioned to be a trading post for farmers in Southern Luzon and nearby regions has also yet to be completed, Daza pointed out.
“I hope this will not turn into another white elephant where you put a structure that is unutilized,” Daza said.
Panganiban said that the DA has added “another P100 million” to the project.
Manuel also asked DA Undersecretary Mercy Sobilla on whether Filipinos would be able to buy rice costing P20 per kilo.
“Parang mahirap (It might be difficult),” the official replied.