ON-SITE PRACTICUM. Farmers from conflict-affected villages of Mahaba and Bayan in Marihatag, Surigao del Sur are now undergoing on-site training on organic farming and other agriculture technologies. This is part of the initiative of the Poverty Reduction Livelihood and Employment Cluster of the Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict headed by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority in Surigao del Sur. (Photo courtesy of 3SFBn)
The Philippine Army has expressed support to the initiative of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority in Surigao del Sur (TESTA-SDS) to help farmers increase productivity amid the continuing threats of the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19).
In a statement Thursday (June 25), the Army's 3rd Special Forces Battalion (3SFBn) said the TESDA-SDS--the government agency that heads the Poverty Reduction Livelihood and Employment Cluster (PRLEC) of the Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (TF-ELCAC) in the province--has already implemented an intensified program for agriculture production in Barangays Mahaba and Bayan in Marihatag town.
“Mahaba and Bayan are among the conflict-affected areas included in the Peace and Development Zones (PDZs) in Surigao del Sur,” said 1Lt. Krisjuper Andreo Punsalan, 3SFBn civil-military operations officer.
With the support of the PRLEC under TESDA-SDS, Punsalan said farmers in the two barangays are now engaged in series of on-site training for skills livelihood programs on organic agriculture in the production of vegetables, herbs, processing of spices, and production of native chickens.
The ongoing program that started on June 15 is also being supported by the local government unit (LGU) of Marihatag, the Department of Agriculture, and the Community Support Program (CSP) of the 3SFBn.
In the same statement, TESDA-SDS director Rey Cueva said the training will contribute to the resiliency of the residents of the two barangays amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Organic agriculture could boost the Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat (ALPAS) program of the DA to produce continuous food supplies as we face the pandemic crisis in the province,” Cueva was quoted as saying.
Col. Joey Baybayan, 3SFBn commander, said that aside from ensuring food security, the program will also contribute in exposing and countering the Agrarian Revolution (AgRev) being espoused by the communist New People’s Army (NPA) in the province, especially in remote and conflict-affected areas.
“AgRev is a tool of the CNTs (Communist NPA Terrorists) to agitate, organize the peasants using issues in the agriculture sector and mobilize them in anti-government demonstrations and eventually recruit them,” Baybayan said.
He added that the fake socio-economic package incorporated in AgRev introduced by the NPA in the far-flung and conflict-affected areas serve as “authority” for them to forcibly and illegally distribute lands to gain supporters through recruitments and create a shadow government.
Baybayan said that former rebels who are now supporting the government have exposed mass organizations, especially farmers’ groups that have direct links with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the NPA and the National Democratic Front
These mass organizations, he added, include the Kahugpungan sa mga Mag-uuma ng Surigao del Sur (KAMASS) and the Nagkahiusang Maguuma sa Agusan Del Sur (NAMASUR) which are all allies of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and the Pambansang Katipunan ng Mambubukid (PKM).
Baybayan also assured the PRLEC of Surigao del Sur of the Army’s continuing support to its programs and initiatives.
“The Army’s team of CSPs, as one of the mechanisms of TF-ELCAC, will continuously be deployed in conflict-affected areas to bridge the gap between the affected communities and the concerned government agencies in addressing various social and basic services issues often exploited by the CNTs to produce recruits through their agitation-organization and mobilization (AOM) scheme,” Baybayan said.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1107049
In a statement Thursday (June 25), the Army's 3rd Special Forces Battalion (3SFBn) said the TESDA-SDS--the government agency that heads the Poverty Reduction Livelihood and Employment Cluster (PRLEC) of the Task Force on Ending Local Communist Armed Conflict (TF-ELCAC) in the province--has already implemented an intensified program for agriculture production in Barangays Mahaba and Bayan in Marihatag town.
“Mahaba and Bayan are among the conflict-affected areas included in the Peace and Development Zones (PDZs) in Surigao del Sur,” said 1Lt. Krisjuper Andreo Punsalan, 3SFBn civil-military operations officer.
With the support of the PRLEC under TESDA-SDS, Punsalan said farmers in the two barangays are now engaged in series of on-site training for skills livelihood programs on organic agriculture in the production of vegetables, herbs, processing of spices, and production of native chickens.
The ongoing program that started on June 15 is also being supported by the local government unit (LGU) of Marihatag, the Department of Agriculture, and the Community Support Program (CSP) of the 3SFBn.
In the same statement, TESDA-SDS director Rey Cueva said the training will contribute to the resiliency of the residents of the two barangays amidst the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Organic agriculture could boost the Ahon Lahat, Pagkaing Sapat (ALPAS) program of the DA to produce continuous food supplies as we face the pandemic crisis in the province,” Cueva was quoted as saying.
Col. Joey Baybayan, 3SFBn commander, said that aside from ensuring food security, the program will also contribute in exposing and countering the Agrarian Revolution (AgRev) being espoused by the communist New People’s Army (NPA) in the province, especially in remote and conflict-affected areas.
“AgRev is a tool of the CNTs (Communist NPA Terrorists) to agitate, organize the peasants using issues in the agriculture sector and mobilize them in anti-government demonstrations and eventually recruit them,” Baybayan said.
He added that the fake socio-economic package incorporated in AgRev introduced by the NPA in the far-flung and conflict-affected areas serve as “authority” for them to forcibly and illegally distribute lands to gain supporters through recruitments and create a shadow government.
Baybayan said that former rebels who are now supporting the government have exposed mass organizations, especially farmers’ groups that have direct links with the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) and its armed wing, the NPA and the National Democratic Front
These mass organizations, he added, include the Kahugpungan sa mga Mag-uuma ng Surigao del Sur (KAMASS) and the Nagkahiusang Maguuma sa Agusan Del Sur (NAMASUR) which are all allies of the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and the Pambansang Katipunan ng Mambubukid (PKM).
Baybayan also assured the PRLEC of Surigao del Sur of the Army’s continuing support to its programs and initiatives.
“The Army’s team of CSPs, as one of the mechanisms of TF-ELCAC, will continuously be deployed in conflict-affected areas to bridge the gap between the affected communities and the concerned government agencies in addressing various social and basic services issues often exploited by the CNTs to produce recruits through their agitation-organization and mobilization (AOM) scheme,” Baybayan said.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1107049
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