Press Release
Statement of the Provincial Government of Cotabato regarding SAAD Project of DA Sec. Manny Piñol- (See attached Screencap for full Statement)
The Provincial Government of Cotabato wishes to belie the allegations made by the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture, Sec. Emmanuel F. Piñol with regard to this SAAD project.
Firstly, Sec. Piñol's assertion that it was during his term as DA Secretary in the year 2016 that this SAAD project was funded for implementation in the Province of Cotabato is false. The truth is the fund for this SAAD program started in the year 2015 and not in 2016 because the source of funds downloaded to the Province of Cotabato is a continuing fund from the 2015 budget of the Department of Agriculture. This was clearly stated by the DA and taken in the Minutes of the Meeting during the SAAD Program Planning and Implementation Conference held on January 19-20, 2017 in Koronadal City. Even so, nothing is arguable, the fact is that it is a government project funded by the public or from the people's money.
Secondly, to make it precise, the Province of Cotabato has only a poverty incidence in the year 2015 of 34.5% and not 47% as uttered by the DA Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol. This is based on the Poverty Incidence 2015 conducted by the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA).When the 2012 full year official poverty statistics report of the National Statistics and Coordinating Board (NSCB) had ranked second the Province of Cotabato in terms of poverty incidence of families, Resolution No. 227, dated May 20, 2014 was immediately issued by the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Cotabato. The said Resolution manifested protest and disagreement to the aforecited Report.
In fact, the Province of Cotabato remains to be a first-class province in terms of income classification and per report of the Bureau of Local Government Finance in Region XII. It consistently leads in tax/revenue collection in the region. Moreover, the Provincial Government of Cotabato is a recipient of the prestigious Seal of Good Local Governance (SGLG) award for three consecutive years in 2016-2108.
Thirdly, the allegation made by the DA Secretary that it took two (2) years for the Province of Cotabato to implement the SAAD project is misleading. To re-state the facts, DA downloaded the funds to the Province of Cotabato only in December 2016. Thereafter, the necessary and regular requisites had to be complied with such as the needed revision of the MOA to conform to its objective, the issuance of an Authority from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Cotabato to empower the Provincial Governor to represent the Provincial Government of Cotabato in entering into the new (revised) Memorandum of Agreement as mandated by the Republic Act No. 7160 or the Local Government Code of 1991 and for this project's supplies to undergo the required procurement process in accordance with RA 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act. All of these requirements were completed only in August 2017. Hence, it would be factual and correct to state that the implementation of the SAAD project commenced in August 2017 and not in December 2016. Its implementation therefore did not go beyond the prescribed period.
Moreover, the issue that DA Secretary Manny Piñol is using Government Funds for kins political bids in the Province Cotabato started when President of the Republic of the Philippines, Rodrigo Roa Duterte called for his presence during the assembly of barangay officials of the country as he is nowhere to be found. President Duterte said, "Saan si Piñol, nandito? Linte na Piñol na Saad ng Saad. In fact, it was shown in the different SAAD activities in the Province of Cotabato that the DA Secretary is present together with his daughter and siblings who are candidates for the different political positions in the province this coming midterm election.
Also present in this SAAD sorties is Governatorial Candidate in the Province of Cotabato and his ally Nancy Catamco who has a pending case filed before the Sandiganbayan after she was charged with two counts of Malversation and one count of Graft over a 5 Million deal under the alleged fertilizer scam. There is a possibility that the Sandiganbayan will issue preventive suspension against Nancy Catamco.
For this reason, the Association of Free Farmers thru its Vice President Teody De Belen asked the DA Secretary to answer allegations that the Department is using Millions of Government Funds to boost the campaign of his daughter, siblings and political allies.
Finally, there is no truth as to the contention of the DA Secretary that the SAAD project for the Province of Cotabato was instead implemented by his staff. DA's implementation plan for this SAAD Program varies in every year. As for instance, for the year 2016, the DA downloaded the funds to the PLGUs or provinces, while in the year 2017, the DA funds were downloaded direct to the MLGUs or municipalities and for the year 2018, it was the Department itself which directly implemented the project.
This SAAD program of the Department of Agriculture is a very beneficial project aimed to alleviate the welfare of the farmers in the country. Thus, the Province of Cotabato is among the LGUs who is very supportive on this undertaking. Every stakeholder is expected to lend its share for its effective implementation. This is funded from the taxpayers' money which ought to be returned to their end by way of government projects and programs beneficial to their way of living.
Instead then of this unfriendly and unfounded asseverations thrown against the Provincial Government of Cotabato, may we be informed from your end as the good Secretary of the Department of Agriculture the product of accomplishments from this SAAD projects, its beneficiaries, the significant impact of these projects on the lives of our farmers and their families and the great contributions it had made to the economy of our country.
The farmers will even appreciate should the good Secretary provides the farmers, particularly to respond to AFF's VP Teody De Belen a matrix of SAAD implementation detailing the recipients of farm equipment, farm inputs (seeds and fertilizers), animal dispersal, including fishery assistance, fingerlings, motor boats, bancas and other DA support to the farmers rather than specifically coming up with accusations or unfounded allegations to the political opponents of his siblings, daughter and ally. Such matrix of report of DA's SAAD program of implementation will even disprove various allegations of several sectors.
