Ilocos Sur mayors urged to help farmers

CANDON CITY, Philippines – Comebacking Ilocos Sur Rep. Eric Singson yesterday called on the newly elected mayors in the province’s second district to help farmers by subsidizing their fertilizer and other farm input requirements for the next planting season.

A former House deputy speaker, Singson said the fund subsidy could be appropriated from each municipality’s share from the tobacco excise tax revenues collected yearly by the national government.

The national government is mandated by law to allocate 15 percent of tobacco tax proceeds to tobacco producing provinces which has reached about P30 billion last year.

Singson said the farmers could no longer afford the rising costs of fertilizer, insecticides, fuel, and water needed for their farms.

“It’s time for us to extend more extensive assistance to them. Let us all join hands for this cause,” he told the mayors who attended his birthday celebration yesterday at the Candon Civic Center.