Small Farmers Castigate House Speaker Nograles

Speaker Prospero Nograles was again criticized by agrarian reform advocates for delaying the plenary deliberations for House Bill No. 4077 or the CARP Extension with Reforms bill.

RCM vowed to continue its campaign for CARP extension with reforms saying that the farmers have already started the “Lupang Hinirang, Lupang Hinarang” campaign which include marches, educational fora and signature gathering to apprise the public of the ongoing call for the extension with reforms of CARP.

The Reform CARP Movement (RCM), a coalition of peasant organizations, non-government organizations, party-list organizations and individual advocates started pushing for the extension with reforms of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) last year. The RCM was recently appraised that Speaker Nograles has constituted another body, an “Ad Hoc Committee,” that would look into and finalize the proposed amendments and reforms for the CARP extension with reforms bill.

“Di namin maintindihan kung anong lohika ng pagbuo ng isa na namang komite gayung yung naunang “Speaker’s Committee” na binuo din ni Speaker Nograles nung nakaraang taon pa ay wala namang nailabas na mga konkretong reporma at pag-amyenda para sa CARP Extension with reforms bill,” RCM member and PAKISAMA President Ka Crispin Aguello said.

 “Mauulit lang ang kabiguan noong nakaraang taon. Sana naman ay huwag nang patagalin pa ni Speaker Nograles ito at hayaan niyang mapagdebatehan sa plenaryo,” urged Ka Trinidad Domingo, another RCM leader and PKKK Chairman.

The RCM lamented that even as the country is set to celebrate the EDSA People Power event on February 25, the gains achieved, which include the implementation of agrarian reform,  are being slowly eroded and in some instances totally obliterated. “Ang people power sa EDSA ang naging daan upang maging laman ng Konstitusyon ang mga aspirasyon natin bilang isang bansang malaya. Kaso, mukhang hindi tayo natuto sa kasaysayan. Paulit-ulit nating ginagawa ang ating kamalian, kagaya ng pagbalewala sa panawagan ng maliliit na magsasaka para magkaroon ng sarling binubungkal na lupa,” Ka Jimmy Tadeo, another RCM leader and PARAGOS Chairman said. “Parang hinahamon ng gobyerno na mag-alsa muli ang mga tao!”