Hundreds barricade street in Davao Oriental to demand rice

MATI CITY, Davao Oriental – At least a thousand persons barricaded Paylon Street here Tuesday morning, demanding the release of rice they accused Davao Oriental Gov. Corazon Malanyaon of hoarding.

The protesters, led by a group called Barug Katawhan (literally, “People, Stand Up’), planned to hold a rally in front of the hilltop provincial capitol but were blocked by police.

The governor has denied allegations that she kept the rice intended for victims of Typhoon Pablo, but the organization claims she has been distributing rice intended for typhoon victims to supporters of candidates allied with her administration at election campaign rallies.

Barug Katawhan is the same group that led protesters who took away sacks of rice and boxes of relief goods from the regional office of the Department of Social Welfare and Development in Davao City last February.