Benguet farmers urged to switch to tobacco

ITOGON, Benguet – Plant tobacco in place of marijuana? It may take a lot of convincing for growers of the prohibited grass to make the shift, but Benguet Governor Borromeo Melchor appears hell-bent in pursuing his idea.

Melchor blurted out the idea during a press conference here recently presided by Philip Morris Philippines managing director Chris Nelson and Administrator Carlitos Encarnacion of the National Tobacco administration.

The two had earlier officiated at the graduation of 50 upland farmers who attended a five-month classroom and field training on tobacco growing that was sponsored by Philip Morris and its local trading arm Trans Manila Inc. (TMI).

"We can plant tobacco in places where marijuana is grown, " Melchor said. He noted that tobacco, like marijuana, does not need much water.

According to Melchor, Benguet has 25,000 hectares of irrigated land out which only 7,000 hectares have complete facilities and are fully utilized. The rest are underutilized.

Most of the country’s marijuana production come from Benguet, it was learned. A high unemployment rate of 85 percent prevails in the province, according to the governor, which makes marijuana raising tempting.

He welcomed the introduction of tobacco farming in his province which he said used to thrive in vegetable growing. Local vegetables have suffered a heavy beating due to the importation of cheap vegetables from countries like China.

The collapse of the vegetable industry in the upland provinces has made tobacco as an alternative crop attractive, said Itogon Mayor Mario Godio. Philip Morris and TMI had their first upland tobacco growing in another vegetable raising town in nearby Tuba, Benguet after getting the farmers similarly trained last year.

Nelson and Encarnacion said that Tuba produced high quality tobacco crop in the two seasons they have been raising tobacco and earned much higher income than with their vegetables.

"This (tobacco farming) is something (that happened) to uplift the economic situation in our barangays," Melchor claimed adding that the same can happen on lands planted with marijuana.

In pitching for the conversion of marijuana lands into tobacco raising, he noted that the local government units would benefit from their share of the tobacco excise taxes collected by the National Government from cigarette manufacturers.

"Walang mapapala ang gobyerno sa marijuana (The government does not get anything from marijuana)," another local official was overheard commenting during the press conference.

"Our share (in tobacco taxes) can be used to build our roads,"Melchor said.

It was not known how Melchor would inch his way through with his smart idea but an aide told The STAR that the neophyte governor will be vigilant against the illegal farming practice.

He said he was determined to make his mark as a provincial executive.