The dwindling rice production and skyrocketing prices of rice in the agricultural sector is now recently being faced by nations globally. The trend will continue until the year ends and it is causing many Asian countries including the Philippines to panic.
The Philippines is one of the top importers of rice in the world. As rice is a politically sensitive commodity in this country, it is not surprising that reports of a rice shortage have energized political debate and public concern regarding the economic policies of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.
How ironic it is for an agricultural country, which has once been the top exporter of agricultural products such as rice, coconut and abaca, to face this kind of crisis. The Philippines has 8.5 million hectares of arable land. The Department of Agrarian Reform and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources have distributed 6.5 million hectares to 4 million farmer-beneficiaries. Nearly half of this area is mainly for rice and corn production, under Presidential Decree 27. More of these agricultural lands were distributed later under RA 6657 but eventually, grain productivity took a dive. During the 1960s, our irrigation system was praised by the World Bank as one of the best in the world, yet by 2001, it had deteriorated badly due to corruption and lack of maintenance budget.
Why does rice production shortage haunt our society? If the Philippines is truly an agricultural country with enough laws and reform programs to sustain itself, why does it suffer under a shortage of a commodity as basic to Filipino life as rice?
Sec. Arthur Yap of the Department of Agriculture says there is no rice shortage in the country, what we have is rice land shortage. But whatever the real problem is, should it not have been resolved long before it became worse?
The problem on our dwindling rice production is dust that has been continuously swept under the rug. It is now piled up and fetid. At this point in time, it is only appropriate for us to say that the system failed. We failed.
Our country was once a paradise, an agricultural haven. However, it is seemingly morphing into a political and economic battlefield. Cover ups, bad propaganda, mud slinging-- everyday is an election day in the country. In newspapers, politics occupies the most space. It is ostensible that we have been negligent.
We have forgotten our role. The problem on rice is not to be blamed only on our government or the system. We have to accept our faults too. While many of the government officials are busy pinning the blame on each other, we are also busy watching them argue on televison shows. We dedicate hours watching real life soap opera thinking that finding out the culprit will elevate our situation. Of course, it would be good to know whom not vote for in the next elections, but blaming each other is simply not enough.
We should not be dazzled with politics and continuously dose ourselves with strenuous things. Let us concentrate on more important things. The problem on rice only reflects our blind eye towards the less explosive albeit more essential aspects of our country- that is, not what others should dobut what we can contribute. Let us not depend much on incompetent country officials to experience conscience all of a sudden. We have to start from our own little way in helping our country survive the crisis.
As citizens of the Philippines, we should empathize with the government and cooperate with its plans and projects. We should not put all the burden and blame on the government for the government is not the whole Philippines, we are also part of the country.
Rice production shortage will be easy to solve if we cooperate and let our true Filipino values stand out. Discipline and bayanihan is all we need. Therefore, it should start within us.We should keep in mind that improvement always starts with “I”. If we drop our inadvertence, then certainly this crisis will not be repeated.
Perhaps we can use this crisis as a stepping stone towards building a better nation.
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