Former Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol should explain the “buying spree” of farm equipment that reportedly turned out defective and left unused in some areas in the country, President Duterte said.
The President said he wanted to know if the Agriculture department consulted the farmers before purchasing the farm machineries that were supposed to enhance their agricultural production.
Duterte issued the directive after receiving complaints about some faulty farm equipment during the ABS-CBN program “Failon Ngayon” aired last Saturday night.
“I think we have to call Piñol to explain why they went to a buying spree for machineries that could not be used. Was there was a sufficient knowledge beforehand that itong mga machines would really fit what is required in the field. Did they consult the farmers of what the farmers need?” he said. “The machinery seemed to be not in harmony with its users,” he added.
He admitted that they initially did not see any problem in the farm machineries when purchased. “It is only after sinubukan ng mga tao they began to discover the inadequacy or the failure of the machineries,” he added.
Duterte said he was wondering if there was “miscalculation” in the purchase of the farm equipment that reportedly did not meet the standards of rice production. “So I would like to call back, he (Piñol) is still with Mindanao doing his work there. He will explain to us why it is now developing into a problem,” he added.
The television program showed some farmers in Eastern Visayas complaining about the defective farm machineries received from the Agriculture department last year. The farmers claimed they were not consulted about the proper machinery they needed.
Piñol was recently appointed chairman of the Mindanao Development Authority. Prior to his appointment, he led the Agriculture department since 2016. (Genalyn Kabiling)
