Double The Aggie Budget, Leni Robredo Promises. What About PH Visionary Leadership?

Will doubling the 2021 budget for 2022 be good for PH Agriculture? Good, but not good enough!

I am reading Mara Cepeda’s Rappler news report, “Robredo To Give At Least P116 Billion For Agriculture If She Wins In 2022[1]” (29 Nov 2021):

If Vice President Leni Robredo becomes the next Philippine President, she plans to allot at least P116 billion for agriculture on her first year, more than double… what President Rodrigo Duterte’s government gave the pandemic-hit sector in 2021.

Repeat: “More than double” what PRRD has given to Agriculture this year. Very Good! I say. But not good enough, as I will explain in a little while.

To be fair, Leni does point out that the Department of Agriculture (DA) had requested a total budget of P284.4 Billion for 2021; but what was approved was only P68.6 Billion, not even half of the request. I say our legislators do not give much value to PH Agriculture, while our Vice President is playing her guts, coming from the boondocks, which she terms “laylayan ng lipunan” (fringes of society). She sympathizes; she empathizes.

Leni’s Big Budget for DA will go into “funding more climate-resilient crops that farmers can (grow) in their provinces.” As an agriculturist and a warrior writer & blogger for climate change in the last 21 years, I say focusing on “climate-resilient crops” is a very intelligent choice. I must say Leni has in her team a good mind or two thinking agriculture for development!

Now then, she talks about the distribution of that budget (from hereon, I am translating her freely):

When we say it’s justified, where are the opportunities? Which ones are the most resilient subsectors of agriculture? Where there are those opportunities, we should give more, we must give bigger allotments.

Now she’s talking much sense! “Where are the opportunities?” Naturally, she equates the opportunities with the climate-change resilient sectors of Agriculture. What did school dropout-turned-billionaire-Virgin-Group-owner British Richard Branson say about solving problems? “Don't See Obstacles, See Opportunities[2].”

We have not been giving more focus to budgeting for the more climate-resilient crops, as far as agriculture is concerned. Because we are always taking into consideration the per-province basis, what are the climate conditions there? What are the types of soils there? What should be the budget for the more climate-resilient crops, we must look into that.

Ms Mara says, “The Vice President then pointed out the need to fund more climate-friendly crops (that) farmers can harvest (more from), depending on conditions in their provinces.” Yes, Ma’am, your Total Agriculture budget must be farmer-friendly, and the crops cultivated pocket-friendly!

Nonetheless, as an agriculturist, I declare that even with that Agriculture Budget trebled to P348 Billion, I am not yet convinced to vote for her as President! Why?

First & above all, I must know where she is coming from, what is her Vision for the whole Philippines – her Guide for her Leadership, a near-future Philippines we can all be excited about? A leader without Vision has only Ambition!@517

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[1]https://www.rappler.com/nation/elections/robredo-to-give-billions-agriculture-if-she-wins-2022-polls?utm_term=Autofeed&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1zN5Ezc6RldxF8fsYpMRBAMOAKZzz7oN8jAYiJNU4KsSiR7bGQFVF-e-8#Echobox=1638158327

[2]https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/richard-branson/richard-branson-business-advice_b_1931712.html

Bonifacio As Hero Exaggerated By Agoncillo. (Never Mind, Let’s Invent Our Own Big-Little Hero!)

“Isbo” in Ilocano means “urine.” Perhaps in Grade 5, in 1951 or some 70 years ago, in my hometown Asingan, Pangasinan, when we full-blooded Ilocano (FBI) boys were commonly urinating, the joke was, “Is Bonifacio a hero?” (Laughter)

Sorry to disappoint you, whoever you are, FBI or not, but Andres Bonifacio is not much of the hero that historian Teodoro A Agoncillo portrayed him to be!

I knew that 24 years ago yet. How did I remember all that? I bragged & blogged about it, 28 Dec 2007, “Inventing A Hero. Each Of Us Looking Through The Mirror Of Everyday[1]” (A Magazine Called Love, Blogspot.com). This is part of what I wrote:
(book cover image[2] from amazon.com)

I final-edited the book by Glenn May published in 1997 by New Day (Quezon City, Philippines): Inventing A Hero. The subtitle tells you enough of its contents: The Posthumous Re-Creation Of Andres Bonifacio. The author casts doubts on much of the bits and pieces of information we know of Bonifacio, the second most popular national hero of the Philippines, by questioning the integrity of the sources, both persons and papers. The historian in Glenn May makes a very good case in putting to doubt the historian in Teodoro Agoncillo in his account of Bonifacio, his hero. Bonifacio was a hero, May says; one must not doubt… it; but an erudite one? Bonifacio’s intellectual genius has not been established. One must not think about it.

30 November 2021 is the 158^th birthday of this Filipino hero; he founded the society called Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan, or Katipunan, that which fought for and eventually obtained the Philippines’ emancipation from Spain (but not from the United States of America, which is another story). No doubt Bonifacio was a hero, but we must deconstruct him from Agoncillo’s hero-making.

In my “Inventing A Hero” essay of 2007, I also said:

Rizal was a hero for peace, Bonifacio was a hero for war. Peace for peace, war for peace. Rizal stood for progress by way of reformation; Bonifacio stood for progress by way of revolution. Do you advocate the Rizal hero or the Bonifacio hero? Will you do a Rizal or a Bonifacio?

I’ll do neither. I speak for myself – I wouldn’t think of dying for my country like Rizal did. And I wouldn’t think of dying for my country like Bonifacio did either. In any case, it’s too gory for me. I never liked the sight of blood, especially my own.

Nonetheless, each of us can be a little hero. It’s simple – and not so simple:

Love more.
Give more.
Help more.
Contribute more.
Forgive more.
Be more considerate.
Be more gracious.
Be more gallant.
Be more kind.
Be more forgiving.

Each one of us can be a little more heroic to our own family. A little more heroic to our neighbors. A little more heroic to strangers. Then the world will turn into a lovelier place because of more little heroes like us!@517

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[1]http://amagazinecalledlove.blogspot.com/2007/12/inventing-hero.html

[2]https://www.amazon.com/Inventing-Hero-Posthumous-Re-Creation-Bonifacio/dp/1881261190

Any Of PH Presidential Candidates Has Head Towards Heaven & Eyes Towards The People?

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) is minding the 2022 presidential elections; I am a Roman Catholic and I don’t mind at all!

ANN says today, Sunday, 28 Nov 2021, a day of obligation for Roman Catholics, “CBCP Releases Prayer For The 2022 Elections[1]” (Author Not Named, Rappler.com). ANN counts 24 lines and I count 214 words total. Meaningfully, Angelic Numbers says[2]:

The… number 214 encourages you to regain control of your life. You may have lost your bearings due to something unexpected, but this is not enough reason to completely lose control of your life.

How prophetic is that!? Since the filing of candidacies by those running for President in the 2022 elections, we Filipinos have been razzle-dazzled by the 3 frontrunning presidential wannabes – Bongbong Marcos (Ilocano), Isko Moreno (Tagalog), and Leni Robredo (Bicolano) – that is, Bongbong by parades of red (people & vehicles), Leni by gatherings of people in pink & buildings glowing in that color, and Isko by his presence in plentiful places to please people with promises.

I am extremely glad that my church, through the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), has released a prayer “for all Catholic churches in the Philippines to recite ahead of the 2022 elections.” ANN says:

The prayer is 24 lines long and calls for a fair and just election and (wishes) that "genuine fear of God and love of neighbors" would guide officials who would be elected. The prayer is seen to be recited by millions of Filipinos even at a time when attendance to masses has been reduced under the pandemic.

I will now quote some parts of the prayer:

Leader:
Let us pray together:
Response:
Hear us, Lord
That conscience may always be our ultimate norm...
That the common good may always be our highest goal...
That human dignity may be respected all the time...
That the poor and the weak may always have the priority...
That care for creation may never be ignored...
That solidarity may guide the path of peace and development...
That genuine fear of God and love of neighbors may guide those who seek public office...

The CBCP prayer implies how the candidates are or should be behaving – I find that I must add to the qualifications what and how the candidate should be thinking for the common good of the people when s/he wins!

More than 2 months ago, I began writing in my blog Communication For Village Development (CoVID21) about how we Filipinos can wisely choose our President; here are 4 of my essays:

08-10-2021 – “Filipinos, How You & I Can Choose Our President In The ­2022 Elections”
22-10-2021 – “Polls, Pulse, False: Presidency Is Not Popularity, It’s Leadership”
14-11-2021 – “What Does Agriculture & Apolinario Mabini Have To Do With PH Presidential Candidates?”
18-11-2021 – “Isko Moreno Shows The Way For The New Filipino – Including Agriculture & Digital!”

What did the world’s genius say about all that? “Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind” – Albert Einstein.@517

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[1]https://www.rappler.com/nation/national-news/cbcp-prayer-2022-elections?utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=Echobox&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1aU95rfVLnaiDdSkJaSSu_C3qwZNAHumDfFcBh09t5dyGMee6FZAUiIf0#Echobox=1638072981

[2]https://angelnumber.org/214-angel-number/

PH Aggie Plan – Only Isko Moreno Is Thinking & Talking Somewhat About It!

Displaying favored colors literally and loudly in rallies, hundreds if not thousands of followers of Bongbong Marcos (red), Isko Moreno (blue), and Leni Robredo (pink) show seemingly slow-burning support – but I’m not excited because no candidate is talking about a fiery archipelagic-wide plan for the whole country!
(inset aggie images[1] from Aciar.gov.au)

Nobody has expressed any PH Vision in the next 25 years at least – and I firmly believe: “Kung wala kang Bisyon, puro ka lang Ambisyon!” (“If you have no Vision, you are only pure Ambition!”)

And: Only Isko Moreno is talking about agriculture, he who has risen from among garbage food-seekers in Manila.

So he talks about a “Long-Term Plan Para Sa Agrikultura Ng Bansa” on Facebook (“Long-Term Plan for the Country’s Agriculture” – my translation) on 27 Nov 2021. He says:

Let us pursue a medium and long-term plan and fund to boost the Philippines' agricultural sector. Bigyan natin ng kapanatagan ang mga magsasaka at mangingisda. (“Let us give peace of mind to our farmers and fishers” – my translation.)

He was speaking during a dialogue with agriculture advocates at the Manila City Hall, at the “Halalan 2022 Para sa Agrikultura” (Elections 2022 for Agriculture). Present during the interchange were the following: Alyansa Agrikultura Chair Ernesto Ordoñez, Federation of Free Farmers Chair Leonardo Montemayor, Chamber of Agriculture & Food President Danilo Fausto, Coalition for Agriculture Modernization in the Philippines Chair Emil Javier, and Bayanihan sa Agrikultura Coordinator Hazel Tanchuling. Isko Moreno must know what he’s talking about because, among other things, he graduated from the International Academy of Management and Economics, a private business school in Makati (Wikipedia).

He also said:

I think this pandemic taught us a very good lesson on how we should give much attention to food security. And it’s high time for us na magising ang liderato ng mga ahensya ng gobyerno na pagtuunan ito ng pansin. (…that the chiefs of the agencies of government pay attention to this)

Isko Moreno is wrong if he thinks Secretary of Agriculture William Dar has been remiss in planning for food security. When he was confirmed by the Commission on Appointments on 17 December 2019, on Facebook he talked about food security for consumers as well as higher income for farmers[2].

How important are the Filipino farmers? The FAO says[3]:

Agriculture plays a significant role in the Philippine economy. Involving about 40 percent of Filipino workers, it contributes an average of 20 percent to the Gross Domestic Product. This output comes mainly from agribusiness, which in turn accounts for about 70 percent of the total agricultural output…

You cannot dismiss Agriculture as “small town” talk, because there are millions of farmers and, no, nobody eats anything anywhere if there are no farmers!

Great leaders don’t set out to be a leader… they set out to make a difference. It’s never about the role – always about the goal” – Rachel Ngom.

So, is Isko Moreno my President? No, not until he offers a shareable single goal for 7,641 islands!@517

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[1]https://www.aciar.gov.au/media-search/blogs/partnership-shared-trust

[2]https://www.facebook.com/secretarywilliamdar/photos/all-for-aniatkita-dr-william-d-dar-vowed-to-transform-the-agri-sector-through-hi/163295171703882/

[3]https://www.fao.org/3/ae946e/ae946e03.htm 

Let Maria Ressa Go To Oslo! Plus+ Nobel Prize For THiNK! Journalism, What Do You Think!?

My unsolicited advice to my PH President Rodrigo Roa Duterte: See that Maria Ressa, CEO of Rappler, obtains her visa to travel to Oslo, Norway to personally receive her Nobel Peace Prize on 10 December 2021. A gift to us Filipinos!

The news by Lian Buan is, “Calida Blocks Maria Ressa’s Travel For Nobel Prize: She’s A ‘Flight Risk’” (25 Nov 2021, Rappler.com):

Calling the Rappler CEO a "flight risk," Solicitor General Jose Calida has filed an opposition with the Court of Appeals (CA) seeking to bar Maria Ressa from traveling to Oslo, Norway, in December to personally receive her Nobel Peace Prize.

An unkind Christmas present! No, I do not approve of Maria Ressa’s Truth Journalism, but a world prize is a world prize! And this is the first for a Filipino.

I call mine “THiNK! Journalism.” Preferentially, my kind of journalism is derived from Zig Ziglar’s THINK advice, a very rich lesson from one of the world’s greatest motivational speaker, who said:

Think before you speak:
Is it True?
Is it Helpful?
Is it Inspiring?
Is it Necessary?
It is Kind?
(Above inset image[1] from Twitter.com)

I am a self-styled, self-taught journalist, formal education being a BSA major in Ag Edu  from UP Los Baños, ’65, with a Civil Service Professional eligibility, '64.

I have been browsing the world at leisure at home since the early 1990s when the Internet came to the Philippines. I am a work-from-home communicator. The creator and donor of the Nobel Prizes, Alfred Nobel said:

Home is where I work, and I work everywhere.

And so do I. Thank God for the Internet! And thank God for Agriculture, the biggest industry of our age.

Nobel also said, “Second to agriculture, humbug is the biggest industry of our age.” Humbug means deception, pretense – American Heritage Dictionary. In my self-imposed role as promoter of THiNK! journalism, the deceptions in agriculture may not be intentional but they must be pointed out necessarily – towards the adoption of Regenerative Agriculture (RA), thanks to Robert Rodale of the Rodale Institute for coming out with this concept.

Let me apply my journalism to Hilario’s regenerative agriculture, on field cultivation:

True?
I break the soil shallowly with a rotavator, blades cutting to pieces both soil and crop refuse and mixing them in one rotating motion, creating a surface mulch all over the field. (In contrast, a disc plow breaks the soil into clods that dry up easily.)

Helpful?
With the vegetative compost already applied on the field, I farmer already have an organic mulch automatically applied on my farm! This will result in a bountiful harvest.

Inspiring?
Above, so much labor and so much organic fertilizer applied with little labor should be inspiring to any farmer.

Necessary?
The above steps are necessary for me the farmer to decrease costs and increase net income!

Kind?
The above Hilario’s regenerative agriculture technique altogether is also kind to the environment as there is no chemical fertilizer or pesticide applied!

Give me regenerative agriculture anytime!@517

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[1]https://twitter.com/TheZigZiglar/status/873283566163152896/photo/1

Regenerative Thinking… Regenerative Agriculture In The Philippines

Yes, CoVID21..... Tuesday, 23 November, my blog’s title was “Communication for Development (ComDev).” Wednesday, 24 November, my blog’s title became “Communication for Village Development 2021 (CoVID21).”

Yes! I’m trying to get more attention from more people – in telling more than the truth!

As I say in my Profile About Me: “Not Maria Ressa’s type, mine is THiNK! Journalism: True+ Helpful+ Inspiring+ Necessary+ Kind!” Instead of constantly criticizing, which is being hurtful, we should go beyond being truthful. We happily open our mouth to hurt, but we hardly open our hands to help!

Yes, the other day, Wednesday, I recreated myself, in a manner of speaking! I did not know it previously, but it so happens that in history, on that date was published the book Origin Of The Species.

History.com Editors say[1] that on 24 November 1859, Charles Darwin published Origin Of Species, saying “that man and ape shared a common ancestor. He was said to be a heretic, but his theory was scientifically sound” (“This Day In History: 11/24/1859 – Darwin’s Origin Of Species”).

Without changing the Internet address, I changed my blog’s name “Communication for Development (ComDev);” now it marks the origin of a new species of communication: “Communication for Village Development (CoVID)” – to which I have added the year of origin, hence “CoVID21.” Scary? Wonderful!

The name-concept change came about when I saw what my son Virtual Careers author & master Jomar Hilario said Wednesday, 24 November 2021, in one Facebook come-on post, as his advice to would-be Virtual Assistants (VAs) in order to increase their chances of attracting work-from-home (WFH) business offers. Jomar has elevated the art of being VAs to the art of Virtual Careers (VCs) – where “VCs” emphasizes making virtual assistance a profession, not simply an it-comes-when-it-comes affair.

My son Jomar said: “You create your ‘place in this world’ and you jumpstart your ‘online influencer presence.’"

And that made me decide that I want to create my place in this digital world and jumpstart my own influencer presence. Hence my blog’s clearly directed new name.

I thought that fit my being a self-styled WFH warrior worker for Philippine agriculture & related fields – being all-digital writer, rewriter, editor, layout artist, up to and including being desktop publisher coming out with the portable document format (pdf) prior to actual printing for copies. (Pdf is a secret/non-secret you should explore.) I have worked on 100% digital copies of countless thesis manuscripts, newsletters, journals, and books. At home, I am involved in my digital universe, my 21-year-old blog affair.

Actually, this name-cum-communication-specific-direction-change all started on Thursday, 11 November 2021, when I saw on Facebook Nenita Vargas Caceres’ sharing:

“Set a goal to achieve something that is so big, so exhilarating that it excites you and scares you at the same time” – Bob Proctor.

Yes! I decided that to achieve that Goliath of a Goal, like David I must propel a stone, mine being a new species of thinking, into the still waters of Conventional Agriculture and work to divert it to Regenerative Agriculture.

Regenerative waters, here we drink!@517

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[1]https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/24-899-video

Attention SeedWorks Philippines – Hybrid Rice Via Chemical Farming Vs Regenerative Farming

Filipinos, with the Department of Agriculture (DA), why not “Masaganang ANI, Mataas na KITA”? (Bountiful Harvest, Bounteous Income). Why not intelligent economics with hybrid rice?!

SeedWorks Philippines, I have written about your super-hybrid rice “US 88” (see my 24 November 2021 essay “RevFarm – How Hybrid Rice Can Make PH Millionaires![1]” Communication for Development).

Convinced of the super-worthiness of US 88, as a relentless blogger, UPLB graduate of ’65, BSA major in Ag Edu, and as a recent convert to Regenerative Agriculture, I am hereby enticing SeedWorks to sponsor a year-long public hybrid rice demo of 2 ha where the same US 88 will be planted in both 1-ha fields but with different cultivation methods. Probable test site: PhilRice Los Baños Station.

Field 1 (Conventional Farming)
Field preparation with disc plowing & harrowing & field leveling, nursery, transplanting, mechanical weeding, application of fertilizers & pesticides, usual irrigation practice.

Field 2 (Regenerative Agriculture)
Field preparation with rotavation, System of Rice Intensification (SRI) – none of the steps followed in Field 1.

Day 1
The 2 fields will be simultaneously prepared and digitally recorded visually and aurally, in motion, shown on live webcast, on Facebook. Will invite the media in the Philippines and abroad to witness Day 1 and anytime, especially at harvest time.

Conditions for public field demo

I have no personal conditions; I will not ask SeedWorks to pay me for the concept that is obviously in its favor – because I know that the bigger favor will be for rice farmers in the Philippines and elsewhere!

The regenerative agriculture steps I will carry out in Field 2 are the following:

Crop Refuse – Prior to the field demo, I will require that the previous crop refuse and/or weeds be left undisturbed. Why? Rotavation will turn them into organic mulch!

Rotavation – A 2-wheel hand tractor with rotavator blades attached will be used, with depth of cultivation 2-3 inches only, not deeper. This will leave a surface mulch distributed over 10,000 square meters. Organic matter ready to serve you, Sir or Madam!

Irrigation – No irrigation. With surface mulch already in place, the field will keep itself moist enough for the rice to grow.

Weeding – No weeding necessary. Remember? The rotavation had already defeated the weeds by cutting them and mixing them with the soil – when the living matter rots, as it will, death to the weed seeds!

SRI – On Field 2, I will use SRI as method for planting the rice: 25 cm X 25 cm distance, single seedling at every point. This is following the already-proven fruitful & economic farming method originated by a Jesuit, Fr Henri De Laulanie, based on his observations in Madagascar. If a transplanter is available, that will be used instead of manual labor.

Alternate Wet & Dry (AWD) – If necessary, Field B will employ IRRI’s AWD irrigation frequency.

Arrangements for field demo site with DA’s PhilRice Los Baños, as it is conveniently near IRRI and UP Los Baños campus.

I am doing this because I want Filipino rice farmers to be great & gain!@517

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 [1]https://communicationfordevelopmentphcomdev.blogspot.com/2021/11/revfarm-how-hybrid-rice-can-make-ph.html