STAPLE Bangsamoro lawmaker Suharto Ambolodto (second from left) and Army Lt. Col. Udgie Villan, commander of the 33rd Infantry Battalion, on Friday join local farmers in selling “Ramadan rice,” a staple when Muslims break their fast during Ramadan, at a cost lower than the prevailing market price, to residents of Mamasapano, Maguindanao del Sur. —PHOTO COURTESY OF SUHARTO AMBOLODTO
MAMASAPANO, MAGUINDANAO DEL SUR—In this town infamous for the 2015 bloody encounter that killed 44 policemen and 23 others, something positive is happening: Rice farmers are selling the staple at a lower price to Muslims observing the fasting month of Ramadan.
Lawyer Suharto Ambolodto, a member of the parliament of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority, said the “Ramadan rice,” a 7-tonner variety, was being sold at P45 per kilo or at P1,125 for every 25-kilo bag, lower than the prevailing price of P54 per kilo or the P1,350 per 25-kilo bag in the market.
The rice was planted by the Al-Qhalid Farmers Marketing Cooperative (AFMC) in a piece of land near the site of the clash that killed 44 Special Action Force troops, 18 Moro Islamic Liberation Front fighters and five civilians here in 2015.
The project is part of the “Bigasan ng Bangsamorong Magsasaka” (BBM) that Ambolodto and the cooperative started in Mamasapano in support of the government’s drive to bring down the price of rice.
SPMS Box
It was launched through the Al-Rahman Farmers Multi-Purpose Cooperative, providing affordable rice particularly within “SPMS Box,” or the adjoining towns of Shariff Aguak, Pagatin (Datu Saudi Ampatuan), Mamasapano and Shariff Saydona Mustapha, where the extremist group Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF) operate.
Ambolodto said residents in these areas had repeatedly been displaced during armed clashes between government forces and the BIFF.
READ: Bangsamoro Mufti declares start of Ramadan on March 12
“This initiative is a huge relief to the cooperative members and their families as they observe the holy month of Ramadan,” said Kamad Hasim, chair of the AFMC board.
He said they prioritized selling the locally produced 7-tonner rice to 600 families in Barangay Tukanalipao.
Secured planting
The Ramadan this year, observed from March 10 to April 9, requires Muslims to fast from sun up to sun down, breaking the fast from around 6 p.m. until sunrise the next day, with cooked rice a staple of their diet when breaking the fast.
AFMC, the Al-Rahman co-op and the military joined hands in pursuing the BBM rice project to ensure that farmers plant, nurture and harvest their palay safely and free from the threats and harassment by armed extremists operating in the area.
Ambolodto said the Philippine Army’s 601st Infantry (Unifier) Brigade, 33rd (Makabayan) Infantry Battalion, the 6th Civil Military Operation and Naval Forces Reserve in western Mindanao provided security from planting to harvest in the area.
In September last year, the cooperative already exceeded the 5 metric ton per hectare productivity target that the Department of Agriculture set for 2025, posting a 9.3-MT yield per hectare. Last January, the yield was at 11 MT per hectare, said Ambolodto. INQ