Umali: No rice shortage in Ecija

Gov. Aurelio M. Umali said there could be no rice shortage in Nueva Ecija, stressing that the province, in fact, has surplus rice production.

Full page ads that appeared in leading national dailies last April 11 played up the fact that Nueva Ecija topped the list of provinces with the biggest palay production for the 2007 cropping year.

The province registered a production of 1,356,161 metric tons compared to Isabela's 1,036,917 metric tons; Pangasinan's 1,011,115 metric tons, Iloilo's 823,376 metric tons and Cagayan's 702,561 metric tons.

Figures from the Department of Agriculture showed that the total rice production of Nueva Ecija last year reached 17 million cavans compared to the estimated annual consumption in the province of only 4.5 million cavans.

Umali cited the help extended by the national government to Nueva Ecija rice farmers in the form of irrigation and support facilities. In return, he said that the local farmers toiled hard to produce a huge rice surplus that could benefit the entire country.

He said that the province could even register a third harvest season in 2008 from 22,000 hectares of rice land given more efficient irrigation facilities, subsidized farm inputs, support infrastructure in rural areas and production loans to farmers. ###
 
 

Edno warns: Disparity in rice prices could lead to riot

First Dist. Rep. Eduardo Nonato Joson warned that unless the government steps in to close the gap between the prices of government rice and commercial rice, street riots could break out.

Joson once served as administrator of the National Food Authority (NFA) during the Estrada administration.

He said that while there is no rice shortage, the government could face a serious problem because of the big disparity in the selling prices of NFA rice and the commercial kind.

"If we run out of NFA rice prematurely, there will be long queues, and there will be panic buying," he said.

When that happens, he said the country could experience price riots like what took place in Indonesia and Egypt.

Joson said the government could avoid that situation by using either the "soft" approach where the President meets with rice traders and persuades them to unload their rice stocks, or the "hard" approach of forcing traders to unload their stocks and setting a price limit.

He conceded though that the government could impose price controls only during a state of emergency. ###
 
 

Land conversion blamed for rice shortage

Butil Party-list Rep. Leonila Chavez of Nueva Ecija blames the widespread conversion of irrigated farmlands to non-agricultural use as the root of the current rice crisis.

She said the uncontrolled land conversion, especially in Central Luzon, ruined the Philippines' potential to remain one of the prime rice producers in Asia like before the country made its first rice importation's in the late 1960s.

"We are better at producing rice than most of our Asian neighbors. The problem is that irrigated rice lands are being wiped out because these are being converted into sites for housing and factories, for commercial and industrial uses," Chavez said.

Chavez, chair of the House special committee on food security, said the government should check the conversion of irrigated farmlands into subdivisions and factory sites which has left the country with only two million hectares of fully irrigated rice production areas, way behind Thailand with seven million hectares of fully irrigated farmlands and Vietnam with five million hectares.

"Jungles of concrete are now standing on what used to be vast stretches of green and gold," Chavez rued. ###
 
 

Rice queues in Ecija(?!)

It was reported that long lines of people who wanted to buy rice were observed in the Cabanatuan City public market and other places after the Central Luzon office of the National Food Authority (NFA) ordered its warehouses in the region to remain open even on Saturdays.

Rice dealers, however, said they were forced to sell rice at a maximum of three kilos per buyer instead of five kilos as approved by the government, for fear that they might quickly run out of supplies.

NFA took the move of opening its warehouses from 8:00 to 5:00 PM on Saturdays to accommodate buyers of the cereal.

The government continues to sell NFA rice at P18.25 a kilo despite the real, unsubsidized price of the staple at P28 to P32 per kilo. ###
 
 

NFA starts distributing 1 kilo rice packs in Region 3

To curb the hoarding of rice, the National Food Authority has started to distribute one kilogram packs of rice instead of the regular 50 kilogram bags to retailers in Nueva Ecija and other Central Luzon provinces.

Nicolas Crisostomo, NFA regional director, said the one kilogram bags would prevent the diversion of government-subsidized rice to unintended customers, and assure consumers that they would be getting the cereal at the correct weight.

Crisostomo said they hired several workers to rush the repacking of NFA rice into one kilogram bags for distribution to the agency's 1,500 retailers in Central Luzon.

He said that  the NFA would soon distribute two kilogram packs of rice to its outlets in public markets.

He also said that NFA retailers in public markets have been clustered into five cells for greater visibility of the government-subsidized rice among the low-income target consumers. ###
 
 

Rice farmers can be millionaires

The president of a hybrid rice seeds company said that with modern farming technology like the use of hybrid seeds, rice farmers have the chance to earn millions of pesos annually.

Henry Lim of SL Agritech cited the case of a 24 year old rice farmer in Nueva Ecija whose 18 hectare farm yielded P175,000 in income per hectare this cropping season. 

Lim did not identify the farmer for security reasons but said his palay harvest per hectare ranged from 10 to 12 metric tons.

He said that farmers who owned one to two hectares of rice land can start increasing their yields, and then expanding their land holdings gradually.

He said that there are farmers with small land holdings who earn P70,000 to P90,000 per hectare per cropping season with the use of hybrid rice technology.

If these farmers can increase their land areas to eight or 10 hectares, they can join the ranks of millionaire farmers," Lim said. ###
 
 

Photos taken during the 61st Commencement Exercises
of Wesleyan University-Philippines , Cabanatuan City  last April 4.

Josons and allies charged with graft

Former Gov. Tomas N. Joson III, his son Vice Gov. Edward Thomas Joson, former Vice Gov. Mariano Cristino Joson and his son,  Quezon Mayor Eduardo Basilio Joson, two incumbent local officials and eight other former mayors and Sangguniang Panlalawigan members were charged with violations of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for the questionable donation last year to certain towns of a fleet of heavy equipment and vehicles owned by the provincial government, including the governor's van and the provincial mobile clinic.

The complaint was filed with the Office of the Ombudsman for Luzon by Dr. Raymund Sarmiento, OIC of tHe Public Affairs Monitoring Office (PAMO) based on a special order issued by Gov. Aurelio M. Umali.

The other respondents include incumbent Bongabon Mayor Amelia Gamilla, SP Member Cesar Cucio, former mayors Jose Pocholo Dizon of Guimba -- a son-in-law of First Dist. Rep. Eduardo Nonato Joson --  and Marvin Martin of San Leonardo, and former SP members Bella Aurora Dulay, Jose Bernardo Yango, Cesar Eduardo, Leonardo Garcia and Allan Gamilla.

Except for Martin who is affiliated with the administration Lakas-CMD, the rest of those charged are BALANE party mates of the Josons.

Former Gov. Tomas N. Joson III said the complaint was plain harassment by the Umali administration, pointing out that no money was involved in the graft charges. ###
 
 

2 bodyguards of Umali aide shot dead

Two security escorts of an aide of Gov. Aurelio M. Umali were shot and killed by motorcycle-riding gunmen in Santo Domingo town last April 10.

The Nueva Ecija provincial police chief, Sr. Supt. Napoleon Taas, identified the fatalities as Roy Malijana and Michael Pritanio, both of Barangay Poblacion. 

The two were driver-bodyguards of Dr. Raymund Sarmiento, OIC of the Public Affairs and Monitoring Office (PAMO). They were shot a few meters away from Sarmiento's house.

Last February, Umali ordered Sarmiento to file graft charges against three Josons and their allies for the allegedly illegal donation of capitol-owned equipment to towns controlled mostly by the Josons' party mates in Bagong Lakas ng Nueva Ecija (BALANE).

Taas said they had found a witness in the shooting incident but said it was premature to say that politics was the motive for the attack. ###
 
 

Politics, business rivalry possible motives in ex-SP member's slay

Investigators are looking at politics and business rivalry as possible motives in the ambush-slaying last March 29 of former Sangguniang Panlalawigan Member Rodolfo Lopez in San Isidro.

The victim was a known ally of San Isidro Mayor Sonia Lorenzo.

The Nueva Ecija police director, Sr. Supt. Napoleon Taas, said the victim, while being rushed to the Good Samaritan Hospital in an ambulance, told his wife and son that one of the gunmen was their former driver, Lito Flores.

Taas said the police are now tracking down Flores, his brother Evelito, and  a certain Benito Hipolito.

Murder charges were filed against the three at the provincial prosecutor's office last March 31. ###
 
 

Brother of ex-Pantabangan mayor killed

A brother of former Pantabangan Mayor Lucio Uera  was shot and killed by a lone gunman on the night of April 11.

Police identified the victim as Nestor Uera, 50, a congee stall owner of Poblacion East, Rizal.

He was shot three times at close range. The suspect also fired at an approaching policeman but missed. The latter fired back but also missed the gunman who managed to escape using a black motorcycle with no license plates.

Investigators are eyeing an old grudge as the possible motive for the slay. ###
 
 

Suspect in killing of cop, asset wants to surrender

The main suspect in the killing of a rookie policeman and a civilian agent in Talavera last April 7 has sent surrender feelers.

The Nueva Ecija police chief, Sr. Supt. Napoleon Taas, said Bernie Mamaid of San Pascual, Talavera, had sent word that he was willing to surrender to the police.

Taas said a provincial government official who did not want to be identified was negotiating with the police for Mamaid's surrender.

Mamaid was identified as the suspect in the killing of PO1 Michael Arellano, 32, of 41 Rizal St., Estipuna, Pura, Tarlac, and civilian agent Rudy Hidalgo. ###
 
 

Esperon makes farewell visit to Fort Mag

The Armed Forces of the Philippines chief of staff, Gen. Hermogenes Esperon visited Fort Magsaysay in Palayan City last April 10 as part of his exit calls to military units throughout the country before his scheduled retirement on May 9.

He met with two military units that he once commanded -- the 7th Infantry Division and the Special Operations Command.

"I'm visiting as many units as possible," Esperon said.

When asked for his parting words to the troops, he said he expressed his deep appreciation for their having served under him.

Esperon's term was supposed to have ended last February 9 but President Arroyo gave him a three-month extension to continue the momentum of the fight against communist rebels.

He will be succeeded by the Philippine Army chief, Lt. Gen. Alexander Yano. ###