Bukidnon farmers protest LGU failure to provide drought relief

DAVAO CITY, Philippines—Thousands of farmers barricaded the highway in Kitaotao, Bukidnon, on Tuesday morning, claiming that the local government failed to provide assistance to villagers suffering from the devastation of the dry spell.

Juanito Binaton, spokesperson of the Kahugpungan sa Maguuma sa Kitaotao, said it has been months since farmers were crippled by the effects of the drought in their town, but they have not received any relief from the local government.

“We have been struck by the drought for more than four months already. Our last cropping was in May, but our plants just wilted because of the heat and the absence of rain,” Binaton said in a phone interview.

The farmers said the local government has not responded to their earlier request for help, Binaton said.

“Our families are already very hungry. We do not know when rain will come… We know the local government has emergency funds and they should use it to give us food or else we will die,” Binaton said.

The barricade was launched at around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

Binaton said representatives from the local government unit tried to negotiate but faced a deadlock after it did not agree with the farmers’ request for 2,300 sacks of rice.

The local government unit only committed 600 sacks.

Local police forces quickly responded and helped re-route vehicles, including public utility buses.

Binaton expressed hope that the local government would seriously take the plight of the farmers in the municipality. SM/RC