Peasant group questions fishing tycoon’s appointment as DA chief    

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. (Photo by MARIANNE BERMUDEZ / Philippine Daily Inquirer)

MANILA, Philippines — A peasant group on Sunday questioned the appointment of fishing tycoon Francisco Tiu Laurel as secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA), saying that President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. should be replaced with an expert in achieving food sovereignty and “not in monetizing the ongoing food crisis.”

Unyon ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) acting chairperson Ariel Casilao criticized the designation of Laurel, who donated P20 million for the presidential campaign of Mr. Marcos and P30 million for the Partido Federal ng Pilipinas.

Casilao noted how the 56-year-old businessman became part of the President’s Private Sector Advisory Council “for which he had nothing to show for.”

“Food security is the focus of the agri group of the Private Sector Advisory Council. The group is already sloppy in its sole role, [so] why promote one of them to secretary?” the peasant leader said.

Sixteen months after he assumed office, Mr. Marcos appointed Laurel, his childhood friend and presidential campaign contributor, as his replacement as agriculture secretary, saying that the latter “understands very well the problems” in the sector.

The Laurel family is the owner of Frabelle Group of Companies, which began its fishing business in the 1960s and has expanded into various industries including power generation, real estate, meat and seafood processing, among others.

Before his appointment, Laurel served as president of Frabelle Fishing Corp., one of the top fishing companies in the Asia-Pacific region.

Because of his background and business interests, UMA raised concerns that the new agriculture secretary would push for the liberalization of the fishing industry and allow the corporate plantation system to flourish rather than curb its expansion.