Tobacco is not just for smoking

A Cabinet official, a peasant sector congressmen, and a veteran entertainer have endorsed the continued production of tobacco in the northern provinces to the relief of tobacco farmers and officials beleaguered by contrary calls from anti-smoking advo-cates.

Presidential Adviser for Agri-culture Modernization Angelito Sarmiento, sectoral Rep. Ben Cruz (Butil), and actor Leo Martinez joined hands in promoting tobacco farming at their Dighay-Bayan TV program in Channel 4 recently.

Administrator Carlitos Encar-nacion of National Tobacco Administration and farmer-leader Carlos Cachola who were the show’s guests took no time in thanking the three men who are Dighay’s co-anchors.

Encarnacion and Cachola who head the Philippine Association of Tobacco-based cooperatives pointed out that tobacco is not only for smoking but has its beneficial used that would bring additional economic benefits to farmers.

The NTA chief said the agen-cy’s researchers have tapped tobacco stalks for pulp production which they developed into hand-made paper and tobacco scraps turned into dust as molluscide to kill mollusks in fishponds.

"Huwag diinan ang tabako, ang paninigarilyo lang. Imbes na tuyain ang tabako, dapat tulungan lalo na sa area ng research and development. Nagbibigay ng trabaho yan (Don’t step hard on tobacco, do it only on smoking. Instead of mocking the tobacco crop, let us help the industry especially on the area on research and development)," Sarmiento urged before the end of the program.

Martinez called on the De-partment of Health (DOH) and the tobacco industry sector to stop bickering and instead unite. "Smoking ang masama, hindi masama ang tabako. Kumikita tayo dian (It is smoking that is bad, tobacco is not. We are making money from it)," he said.

The DOH has been waging its no smoking campaign portraying tobacco as causing killer diseases.

Cruz lauded the tobacco crop for generating revenues for the country. "It’s not bad if tobacco production continues because the produce is utilized in other countries as well as here," he said.

Encarnacion was enthusiastic on the prospects of their pulp project saying the NTA has received inquiries from three companies in Canada, France and Italy. "We have already registered this (pulp project) at the Philippine Patent Office." he said.

Earlier reports also cited tobacco for its medicinal qualities and as pesticide for various crops.