City Agriculturist relieved from post

CEBU, Philippines — The Cebu City Agriculturist has been relieved of his post and replaced after multiple complaints and callouts by Councilor Pastor "Jun" Alcover.

Engr. Joey Baclayon was officially relieved from his post last Dec. 19, 2024, which he confirmed in a text message to The Freeman.

Alcover, chairman of the Committee on Agriculture of the Cebu City Council and a vocal critic of Baclayon, now envisions quicker responses to farmers under a new leadership.

Engineer Arleigh Gesta is the new head of CAD, while Baclayon has been transferred to spearhead a project on food security.

Contrary to other transfers, Baclayon told The Freeman that it was "never his choice" to be relieved, adding that being CAD head was his "position."

But for Alcover, it was a vindication. "Tapulan to, tapulan," said Alcover, referring to Baclayon. The councilor also said he told Gesta that they would give him the chance to prove that his leadership is "better" than Baclayon's.

Alcover confirmed that Baclayon had no choice when he was relieved of his post. The councilor noted that he had sought it before the council through a privilege speech and before the Cebu City Mayor.

"Ako gyud ng gipangayo. I delivered a privilege speech even before the time of (Former Mayor Michael) Rama pa," said Alcover.

He added that this long-standing request stemmed from his frustration over Baclayon's leadership, which, to him, didn’t yield results despite a large budget allocation.

He recalled that when he called for Baclayon's resignation, Rama didn't heed his call and defended his appointment of Baclayon. Alcover followed through with a request when Mayor Raymond Alvin Garcia assumed office in a permanent capacity.

Alcover said he “asked for Baclayon’s head” because he could not deal with the latter’s “laziness” and noted that Baclayon would not even go to the city’s mountain barangays to check on the farmers.

For Alcover, he said his passion has always been farming, emphasizing that he always makes time to visit the mountain areas where most of the farmers are.

He assessed that even with evolving technological advancements, most farmers are still using traditional methods of farming.

"How can we be productive kung ing-ana na lang? So kinahanglan nga naa say mga (gamit) ba. Bisan gagmay nalang nga mga tractor ba nga atong paliton para ma-huwam-huwaman sa bukid, instead of kabaw ang gamiton, tractor na ang gamiton," said Alcover.

Aside from this, Alcover is also looking forward to the realization of the creation of a post-harvest facility to store produce and prevent oversupply, especially in the south area.

With these plans, Alcover said he is now challenging the new CAD head, who was serving as Assistant Agriculturist before his appointment, to execute these plans.

It was last Wednesday when Garcia joined Alcover and Gesta in receiving the hydroponics greenhouse from the Department of Agriculture (DA)-7 for the Cebu City government. It was on the same day that Gesta's appointment was formalized.

According to Alcover, the project will encourage farmers to innovate their farming techniques and adapt the soil-less method.

Moving forward, Alcover expects a harmonious relationship between his committee and their counterparts in the executive department.

"We need an Agriculturist with a heart," said Alcover.

Alcover first called the attention of Baclayon during the El Niño season this year, which prompted the city to declare a State of Calamity for all 28 mountain barangays. Alcover urged Baclayon to step down from office due to his alleged lack of preparation to help the farmers brace for the impacts of the hot season.

Among the issues Alcover raised and sought investigation for was the alleged non-utilization of the allotted budget for farmers despite the glaring needs.

He questioned the platform of the investigation, saying that during the executive session before the Cebu City Council, Baclayon allegedly wasn’t able to justify why the P85 million appropriated budget for CAD was not utilized.

Apart from the P85 million, Alcover also disclosed that there was P30 million in capital outlay intended for the procurement of farming equipment that was also left unutilized. —/ATO (FREEMAN)