Barnacles in the field

Agriculture Secretary Edgardo Angara should look into the performance of the DA's field offices tasked with the implementation of the government's food security program. Ed Angara may be moving heaven and earth to energize the administration's top priority program, but unless he can make the barnacles and slowpoke in the DA field offices march with the beat of his drum, food security could yet turn out to be "food insecurity." As it is now, it is highly debatable whether the tail and other parts of the DA body are moving along with the head.

In Eastern Visayas, for example, reliable reports say that the DA's regional officials are moving like turtles in implementing food projects, including those already funded. There is just too much paper-shuffling, too many employees "on field work" on any given day, but who return to their offices with nothing but claims for reimbursement of travel expenses. There is too little sense of urgency in the DA bureaucracy in the region, say my informants.

The result is that hundreds of thousands of pesos for vital food security projects have lapsed into "accounts payable" over the years, and returned to the Department of Budget and Management. In short, these funds have not been utilized as allocated and as scheduled, to the great disadvantage of the intended end-users. Getting the funds back, if at all possible, will entail a lot of hassle and bustle with the DBM. A lot of time and opportunities, too, are wasted.

It takes about three years for an allocation from the DBM to lapse into accounts payable. Three years is a long time for the DA not to be able to finish "small change" projects like small farm reservoirs, water-impounding structures, multi-purpose drying pavements, etc. The big problem is that the DA's dawdling oftentimes takes forever. These may be small projects, but they are the gut projects that matter in the daily life of every marginalized Juan de la Cruz out there in the rural areas.

It is admitted that there are constraints to the speedy implementation of projects. But then, DA officials in Region 8 should have enough sense to untangle the bureaucratic constraints. Unfortunately, the most difficult barrier to overcome is the indifference of many DA bureacrats to get on with the job. It is truly ironic that allocations for government projects revert to the national treasury because of the inability of concerned government agencies to implement already-funded projects. As the saying goes, abundance is an ocean of want.

The record of the House of Representatives, under the leadership of Speaker Manuel "Manny" Villar, is quite impressive. The 11th Congress passed 374 bills, 82 of which are of national application, covering economic reforms, environmental protection, social welfare, and good governance. And very noteworthy is the report of Manny Villar that adequate safety nets were put up for Filipino businesses, in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis and the liberalization process.

Speaker Villar has reason to be proud of several specific legislative measures that will serve the economy well in this millennium: Anti-Dumping Duty Act, Countervailing Duty Act, Safeguard Measure, Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act, Retail Trade Liberalization Act, and New General Banking Act. Now, who said that the Villar-led House did not accomplish much during the past two years? As an observer quipped, all these measures became law after just a year and a half of congressional sessions.

There were other significant initiatives that came out of the legislative mill: -- suspension of VAT on certain services, Clean Air Act, declaration of a tax amnesty, and remedial legislation for war veterans, senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and abused women and children. In Speaker Villar's report to the people, he also cited reform measures on the Bureau of Internal Revenue, Bureau of Customs, Philippine Coast Guard, Professional Regulatory Commission, and technology management and match development. Cheers!

Art A. Borjal's e-mail address: <[email protected]>