ALCALA – A group of farmers belonging to the North and Central Luzon Tobacco Farmers Association (NCLTFA) have protested the refusal of a drying facility for farmers in the town of Alcala to service their requirements for their harvested corn during the rainy season.

Ruben Lagmay, association president, said he brought his 100 bags of corn harvest called “palusot” to the drying facility last August 7 but was told that the volume of his harvest was too little to be accommodated.

Farmers in towns near the drying facility, he said, usually harvest only between 100 and 300 bags because they have small land areas to cultivate. They need the dryer during the rainy months to prevent their harvests from getting spoiled.

“Because the drying plant rejected my corn, I was forced to sell the wet grits at P7 per kilo,” It is widely known among farmers that when traders pay less than P10 per kilo of corn, the farmer incurs losses.

While his and other farmers’ harvests were refused, Lagmay said he saw traders and two town councilors making the deliveries to the drying facility for processing.

“Nasaan ang karapatan ng mga maliliit na magbubukid,” Lagmay asked.

He lamented that he was under the impression the corn and rice drying plant which was built with tobacco excise taxes is for all. 

If only their corn harvests were accepted and dried mechanically, traders would have paid between P12 and P15 per kilo for their produce and not P7.

The latest protest underscored the reported failure and restricted use of facilities built with P857 million in excise taxes for the 5th congressional district before the 2010 national and local elections. (PIO)

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