Extra funds may now be accessed to help hog raisers recover from the African swine fever (ASF), Senator Kiko Pangilinan said as he welcomes the declaration of a nationwide State of Calamity.
“Matagal natin isinusulong ang hiling ng industriya at mabuti naman na sa wakas ay may deklarasyon na. Malaking tulong ang dagdag na pondo na magiging tulong pinansyal o indemnification sa mga magbababoy na halos naubos na ang alaga at dagdag na pondo rin sa pagpapalawig ng biosafety protocols nang masugpo ang pagkalat ng ASF,” Pangilinan said.
President Rodrigo Duterte recently signed Proclamation No. 1143.
It declares a nationwide State of Calamity that urges all government agencies and local government units to mobilize necessary resources to contain and prevent the spread of ASF, with the validity of one year unless otherwise earlier lifted.
“Unless earlier withdrawn, my understanding is one year should be sufficient. For the first year, we hope. Dahil diyan naman talaga ang kritikal yung repopulation ng hog, ‘yung mga baboy. Dapat mabilis kumilos, mabilis makabawi ang sektor ng magbababoy, makabangon muli,” the veteran legislator said.
The former Presidential Assistant for Food Security and Agriculture Modernization cited the case of the coconut infestation dubbed cocolisap in 2014 when the government was able to contain the infestation within six months of the State of Calamity declaration.
The seasoned lawmaker filed a Senate resolution urging the Department of Agriculture (DA) to recommend to the President the declaration of a State of Calamity due to the ASF in early March. It was adopted by the Senate on March 15.
“Magagamit din ‘yung Quick Response Fund ng DA.”
“Ito ay mahalaga para madagdagan ang suporta at alalay ng gobyerno para masugpo ang ASF. Dahil sa ngayon, ang pinakamalaking danyos ay ramdam ng private sector, ng ating mga mambababoy. Government will now step in with additional funding. Magagamit din ‘yung Quick Response Fund ng DA,” the senator stressed.
DA said some additional P6-billion budget is needed for their ASF response, with only P2.6 billion currently available for their ASF response.
“‘Yung declaration ay legal basis para makapag-release ng calamity funds ang national government.”
“‘Yung declaration ay legal basis para makapag-release ng calamity funds ang national government. At kung wala itong state of calamity declaration, walang basehan para maglabas ng dagdag na pondo from the calamity fund of the national government. Wala ring basehan ang mga LGUs para maglabas ng pondo ng kanilang calamity find sa lokal para tugunan itong problema ng African Swine Fever sa kani-kanilang mga munisipyo at bayan,” he said.
Local hog industry has long supported the declaration of State of Calamity saying that they need the funds to quickly recover and repopulate.
According to Proclamation No. 1143, some 3 million hogs and P100 billion have already been lost to the hog industry due to ASF.