The Negros First–Army Wellness Farm program of the 303rd Infantry Brigade, that aims to “win the peace” in Negros Occidental, whose beneficiaries are mostly rebel returnees, may be replicated by other Armed Forces of the Philippines and Army units nationwide.
The
Institute for Solidarity in Asia, a non-government organization that advocates
making good governance a shared responsibility, said in its letter to Army
chief Lt. Gen. Hernando DCA Iriberri, that “the creation of a Wellness farm
that benefits local communities affected by the armed conflict is a shining
example of what could happen when the tenets of Bayanihan are imbibed to
winning the peace”.
Dr.
Jesus Estanislao, ISA chairman, said, initiatives like this are imperative to
the success of the Philippine Army.
The
program is designed to ensure food security, generate basic income and
sustainability, especially for former New People’s Army rebels and their
families, who had abandoned the armed struggle to live a peaceful life, Col.
Jon Aying, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander, said.
The
first Army Wellness Farm, implemented in the 2.5-hectare lot inside Camp Major
Nelson Gerona in Brgy. Minoyan ,
Murcia
The
303rd Infantry Brigade is therefore expanding it to three of the six districts
of Negros Occidental and it is being supported by the provincial government led
by Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr.
Estanislao
called on Lt. Gen. Iriberri to explore the sharing of what he described as
“best practices” to other Infantry brigade units, or even to the Unified
Commands of the Armed Forces of the Philippines
“Please
let your troops, especially the brigade of Col. Aying, know that we applaud
their efforts in nation building,” Estanislao said in his letter to Iriberri, a
copy of which was secured by the DAILY STAR.
ISA
was founded in December 2000 by a group led by Estanislao to raise the
standards of public governance in the country. To achieve this, Estanislao
said, ISA teaches and implements the Performance Governance System – the
official Philippine adaptation of the Balanced Scorecard of the Harvard Business School
Aying
said organic farming is one of their non-traditional innovations in addressing
the insurgency problem in Negros Occidental, without using guns.
He
also said that the program recognizes economic capacity-building of the
beneficiaries to become self-reliant and less vulnerable, with a projection
towards their permanent settlement and production areas assured of protection
from lawlessness and natural disasters.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.