Critics and skeptics of the current administration would not stop attacking and hurling adverse comments about the government’s accelerating rollout of President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr’s flagship food security program “Benteng Bigas, Meron Na!”
But nothing could really stop a determined government to pursue what it simply deemed right for the country and people.
For now, it’s quite obvious that the Department of Agriculture, the National Food Authority, the Food Terminal Inc., and other allied agencies are ramping up their united efforts to provide rice at P20 per kilo to at least 15 million households by 2026.
The initiative has received overwhelming public support while the national government is collaborating with LGUs to sustain and expand the Program.
President Marcos himself has officially announced that to date, the government is providing rice supply that is sufficient for 51 percent of the country’s population.
He said he is optimistic in increasing the number of Filipinos who can purchase the cheaper rice.
“That’s for now and hopefully we will bring it up, up to the point that bigas for all. It will all be P20,” Marcos further said.
Just recently, the DA Regional Office 8 in collaboration with the National Food Authority (NFA) in Leyte, closely coordinated with LGU-Tacloban thru City Agriculturist Romelo Anade to make this initiative happened for the first time while the City government is currently doing its best to forge a Memorandum of Agreement with the Food Terminal Inc. – as the main implementation arm of the government’s Benteng Bigas and Rice for All Program.
Said interagency initiative is brought directly to the barangays through “Kadiwa on Wheels” to spare residents the cost and hassle of traveling to the city proper just to access the affordable rice.
The DA now plans to extend P20 rice access to farming and fishing communities nationwide by month’s end, starting at fish ports.
Weekly provincial rollouts will also continue in areas with active NFA depots/bodegas through the end of the year.
President Marcos has directed the DA to sustain the subsidized rice program until the end of his term in 2028.
But one major concern that keeps bothering the minds of government critics is the question of the program’s sustainability.
On this note, allow me to refresh our memory. Haven’t you heard that a town in Eastern Visayas was the first to have launched the P20 per kilo rice long before the Bigas Meron na Program came to the fore?
Well-intentioned farmers in the town of Biliran, Biliran, have been doing the selling of their rice at only P20 per kilogram since 2023. Accordingly, it’s their way of paying forward to communities after receiving several program interventions from the government.
Municipal Agriculturist Lemuel Antonio said they are the pioneering LGU that positively responded to President Marcos’ challenge to sell rice at P20 per kilo.
Originally, its primary beneficiaries are the poor, including senior citizens without their own income. They initially struggled with rice prices before when said staple food exceeded P40 per kilogram in the market.
Under the scheme adopted by LGU-Biliran, farmers mill their own rice instead of selling palay (unhusked rice) to private traders. The rice is sold at the Kadiwa stores set up in villages by the municipal agriculture office.
Based on this Biliran experience, farmers still gain since the DA is providing free fertilizer and a high-yielding variety of seeds. As we all know, a bag of synthetic fertilizer costs at least P2,000, while a bag of rice seeds costs nearly P1,000. Some farmers receive more than one bag of fertilizer and seeds.
Apart from these inputs, they also get incentives for production from the office of the Mayor. Not to mention the P5,000 unconditional Rice Farmers Financial Assistance (RFFA) continuously provided – with such cold cash that comes from the government’s tariff-generated funds.
So far, a number of local agriculture officers in Leyte and Samar provinces have now been adopting same strategy, like Basey in Samar. Others, are still contemplating if their local chief executives will opt to adopt the said strategy.
Perhaps, taking the cue from LGU-Biliran’s experience, the national government has complemented this LGU-initiative with the launching of Benteng Bigas, Meron na Program.
Many will surely doubt the sustainability of this program, for all intents and purposes, it’s a breath of fresh air that finally, we have a Chief Executive who has the political will to lower the price of our very basic food staple. No other President before him has done this, so far. And such a noble cause must be supported by every Filipino.
During our official Launch at Pope Francis Village here in Tacloban two days ago, the program has earned praises and approval from its beneficiaries such as Senior Citizens, Persons with Disabilities, Solo Parents, and including the beneficiaries of the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program.
The prioritization of the vulnerable sector as program beneficiaries is in consonance with the mandate of the President and Department of Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. the rice being sold and distributed is of good quality despite its affordable price.
Many program beneficiaries openly expressed their gratitude for the initiative.
Melissa Arnoco Labrador, a 4Ps beneficiary, noted that the program will help her save a significant amount of money, as rice prices in the market commonly cost P45, more than double the program’s price.
Anilia Capul, a senior citizen and beneficiary of the program, stated that the initiative is a huge help to her large family, consisting of 10 members, including seven grandchildren.
“Nagpapasalamat ako hin madamo,” [I am greatly grateful] Capul said, expressing her gratitude to the government agencies behind the program.
The Benteng Bigas, Meron Na! or P20 Rice Program, is a partnership undertaking between the National Food Authority (NFA), the Food Terminal Incorporated (FTI), and Local Government Units (LGUs) that seek to avail of the program.
Allied government agencies such as DOLE, DTI, and DSWD are also strongly supporting the program with each one trying to forge a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with FTI, so that they could respectively cater to their qualified target clients.
Personally, I consider this initiative a milestone, and a real game changer. We hope and pray that more community-based programs like this, will be initiated by the current dispensation for the benefit and welfare of the Filipino people.
