ANGELES CITY– Marking the 68th World Food Day yesterday, the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) warned of food insecurity in the country for as long as pork barrel remains in the government.
This, even as KMU labeled Pres. Aquino, Agriculture Sec. Proceso Alcala, and the pork barrel system as “the biggest stumbling blocks to the country’s food security.”
“As long as Aquino maintains the pork barrel system that makes agricultural funds vulnerable to plunder, food security and food self-sufficiency can never be achieved by the country. Aquino, Alcala, the pork barrel system, and the lack of genuine agrarian reform are the biggest stumbling blocks in the attainment of food security,” said KMP Secretary General Antonio Flores.
Flores said the President’s refusal to abolish the pork barrel system is “tantamount to the state’s abandonment of its obligation to support farmers and agricultural production.”
“There is no reason to celebrate World Food Day. Under Aquino, every day is hunger day,” Flores said.
Early this month, the KMP fi led a plunder case against the President, Alcala, and several top ranking officials of the Department of Agriculture (DA) for alleged complicity in the use of bogus non-governmental organizations in channeling huge pork barrel funds.
“Those involved in the scam were using the hapless farmers and their miserable situation as justification for the release of the public funds they have squandered,” he said.
Flores also described as “equally revolting” the reports that “agencies of the government, in one way or another, facilitated, abetted and even directly twisted rules and regulations to ensure the successful pillage of public funds.”
Flores cited a recent survey indicating that poverty incidence in the country worsened from 19.2 percent (about 3.9 million) in March to 22.7 percent (an estimated 4.9 million) in June.
He noted that the survey results reflected the highest hunger rate recorded since March last year at 23.8 percent.
The survey noted that hunger rose sharply among the poor. Flores also noted that moderate hunger, which refers to those who experienced having nothing to eat “only once” or “a few times” in the last three months, increased to 17.3 percent (around 3.7 million families) from 15.6 percent (3.2 million)in March.
Severe hunger, which refers to those who experienced having nothing to eat “often” or “always” went up to 5.4 percent (around 1.2 million families) from 3.6 percent (726,000), he also noted.
