PIA Press Release
Sunday, January 22, 2012 DA chief urges farmers to help achieve food sufficiencyKORONADAL CITY, Jan. 22 (PIA) -- Farmers should be in the forefront of making sure that the government efforts to attain food sufficiency would be successful, an agriculture official said.Department of Agriculture Region 12 Regional Executive Director Amalia Jayag-Datukan expressed his challenge to farmers during a recent dialogue with farmers at Central Mindanao Integrated Agricultural Research Center in Amas, Kidapawan City. Some 894 bags of certified seeds were distributed to farmers of Kabacan, Pikit, Carmen and M’lang towns affected by recent floods. “Do not leave us alone in this. Join us in the Food Staple Sufficiency Program because this is for the Philippines, the farmers and the citizens of the country,” she told farmer-recipients. She also encouraged them to be positive, enthusiastic and honest in implementing the department’s programs. “I don’t entertain failures. There is no such thing as failure. We’re just challenged by time,” she said, adding that it is difficult to work with people of negative outlook. As front liners in rice production, the farmers should take their role more seriously for the achievement of self-sufficiency in rice and other staple crops in the country, she said. Datukan clarified that the turn-over of bags of palay seeds is not a seed subsidy program of DA but only calamity assistance. She explained that the seed subsidy program was terminated because the department is pursuing long-term projects such as the construction of farm-to-market roads and the acquisition of postharvest facilities, farm machineries and support irrigation facilities. As a reminder, she told farmers, local and provincial agriculture employees to submit their project proposals for the regional office to determine and to confirm which among these would be a significant undertaking for immediate implementation. With regard to the submission of project proposals, she encouraged reinvigoration of farmer’s organizations and communal farmer’s alliances to present a group project proposal. Datukan is looking forward to more enthusiastic, more participative and relatively successful farmers in North Cotabato. (DEDoguiles/PIA 12/LMSalvo/DA 12) | 
