A former Moro rebel who turned into farming following the
signing of the 1996 peace agreement between the government and the Moro
National Liberation Front (MNLF) could hardly utter a word and fought hard to
find exact word to express how grateful he was after receiving farming
assistance from the government.
Speaking in the vernacular, Marani Samiana, a father of two
and the representative of Sitio Basak MNLF Multi-Purpose Cooperative, could
only say “Salam” (Thank you, Allah).
When asked how he would make use of the government farming
equipment handed over to him Wednesday, Samiana mentioned only few words but
made government agriculture officials smile.“I will ensure and prove to the
government it did not fail in choosing me as beneficiary of this project for I
will make use of it where it is intended,” Samiana said in broken Pilipino.
He said since the creation of the cooperative in 2002, it
was the first time they received such form of assistance from the government.
Samiana’s cooperative was among the farmers’ cooperatives in
Maguindanao that received over Php7.5 million worth of projects, including
equipment and livestock for livelihood through the Department of Agriculture
and Fisheries of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (DAF-ARMM).
Lawyer Laisa Alamia, ARMM executive secretary and
concurrently DAF-ARMM regional secretary, said the animal dispersal and other
livelihood assistance were part of the initiatives under Payapa at Masaganang
Pamayaman (PAMANA) program of the agency. The MNLF communities are the
program’s direct beneficiaries.
Alamia led the distribution of 16 farm equipment and 400
heads of livestock on at the ARMM compound in this city.
She said the farm equipment – composed of mobile rice mill,
rice thresher, and corn sheller – were estimated to be worth over Php3.7
million while the livestock – comprising of cows, carabaos, and goats – were
estimated at Php3.8 million.
The cooperative-beneficiaries of the farm equipment were
Malangit MNLF Farmers Marketing Cooperative, Sitio Basak MNLF Multi-Purpose
Cooperative, MNLF Striking Force Farmers Producers Cooperative, Sandigan Agri
Multi-Purpose Cooperative, Stronghold Agricultural Producers Cooperative,
Frontline National Multi-Purpose Cooperative, Pagawayan Urban Poor
Multi-Purpose Cooperative, Salipongan Hidaya Producers Cooperative, and RNUC
Multi-Purpose Cooperative.
On the other hand, the recipients of work animals were Tagie
Farmers and Fisherfolks Marketing Cooperative, Mangadeg Bangsamoro Farmers
Marketing Cooperative, Iganagampong Farmers Marketing Cooperative, Lower Idteg
Bangsamoro Producers Cooperative, Kayaga MNLF Farmers Marketing Cooperative,
Sitio Basak MNLF Multi-Purpose Cooperative, National Security Command Striking
Force MNLF Farmers Producers Cooperative, Camp Safaruddin Women Auxiliary Unit,
and Bangsamoro Marketing Cooperative
Alamia said the Sitio Basak MNLF Multi-Purpose Cooperative,
with more than 150-members, received a corn sheller, a rice mill, and 15 heads
of cows.
Samiana said that these would be a big help in uplifting the
lives of the people in their community.
Earlier, DAF-ARMM, through its Agri-Pinoy program, also
turned-over farm equipment composed of hand tractor with implements, rice
threshers, and floating tillers to 25 cooperatives in Maguindanao. The
equipment amounted to Php3.6 million.
The PAMANA program is an initiative of the national
government to achieve peace and development in conflict-affected areas.
The Agri-Pinoy Rice program on the other hand, is one of the
banner initiatives of the Department of Agriculture targeting rice farming and
uplifting the lives of Filipino farmers.
http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=834087
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