Poe urges gov’t: After war on drugs, hunger next

Senator Grace Poe. PHOTO FROM SEN. GRACE POE’S OFFICE

After illegal drugs, the Duterte government should wage war next against hunger, Senator Grace Poe said on Tuesday.

“Kung gaano kasigasig ang pamahalaan laban sa droga, hinihiling ko na kasunod nito, gutom naman ang ating wakasan (Just as how the government is relentless in war on drugs, I hope after this, let us end hunger),” Poe said when she spoke before the Anti-Hunger Summit at Ateneo de Manila in Quezon City.

“Kung all-out ang gobyerno sa droga, all-out war sa gutom naman ang isunod natin (If the government has an all-out war against drugs, let us have an all-out war on hunger next),” the senator added.

President Rodrigo Duterte earlier asked for an extension of his self-imposed three-to-six month deadline to stop crime and illegal drugs, saying he would need another six months to fulfill his campaign promise.

READ: Duterte wants war on crime, drugs extended for 6 more months

“Dapat walang pulitika pagdating sa pagkain para sa lahat (There should be no politics when it comes to food for all),” said Poe.

The government, she said, must focus on programs to solve malnutrition and hunger “as a way to invest in the nation’s human capital, hand-in-hand with the ongoing battle to ensure peace and order.”

The senator has filed two nutrition measures—Senate Bill (SB) No. 160 or the Libreng Pananghalian sa Pampublikong Paaralan that provides free school feeding program for all public schools and SB No. 161 or the First 1,000 Days Act, seeking to establish a natal care program for expectant mothers and health care and feeding program for toddlers.

Poe said she already wrote to Duterte to certify as urgent her twin anti-hunger measures to facilitate swift approval by Congress.

“Pangunahing adbokasiya natin ang tugunan ang problema sa gutom sa ating bansa. Naniniwala akong anumang pagsisikap natin na maiangat ang ating bansa ay walang silbi kung nagugutom ang ating mga mamamayan (It’s our primary advocacy to address the problem on hunger in our country. I believe that no matter how hard we try to uplift our country, it would be useless if our countrymen are starving),” she said.

The senator cited a survey by the Social Weather Stations indicating that 3.1 million Filipino families suffered from hunger during the first quarter of this year, an increase of half a million hungry families recorded in the last quarter of 2015.

Another report by Save the Children, she said, showed that “childhood stunting,” the most prevalent form of undernutrition that has permanent effects on a child’s growth and development, cost the the country P328 billion or almost three percent of its gross domestic product and had affected workforce productivity and education.

“Feeding children at an early age is investing in the future of our country,” said Poe. RAM/rga

READ: 15M PH kids hungry–Poe