Piñol, Guico Cite Pluses To Unclog NCR

 By Mortz C. Ortigoza

KIDAPAWAN CITY, Cotabato - Two vocal advocates of the  Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program (BPBPP) cite its economic advantages of decongesting the cheek by jowl’s  12,877,253 population (2015 Census) of the National Capital Region (NCR) amid the specter of the dreaded Corona Virus Disease-19 (ConViD-19) pandemic.

Mindanao Development Authority Chief and Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol, whose office plays a major role to make the BPBPP possible, cited the multiplier effects of a government initiated project for the NCR residents in one of the seven designated provinces.

“The program will for example provide five hectares where housing and poultry production are located. The manure of the chicken will be intended for organic farming. Now, would the other people of the provinces benefit for these? If you create an economic activity there will be demand for raw materials. If you create a broiler production program you need corn, sorghum,” he told this writer at his farm in Kidapawan City.

DENSEST. Metro Manila is one of the densest regional cities in the world with her cheek by jowl’s  12,877,253 population (2015 Census). Its people were the most vulnerable victims of the deadly Corona Virus Disease-19 in the Philippines when the pandemic gone berserk starting in March this year. Photo Credit: Insider.com

 National Housing Authority (NHA) General Manager and Balik Probinsya Executive Director Jun Escalada said the seven provinces are Leyte, Camarines Sur, Zamboanga del Norte, Bukidnon, Lanao del Norte, Pangasinan, and Quirino.

 Pangasinan Fifth District Congressman Ramon Guico, III cited through phone call to this newspaper that the uniformity of the daily minimum wage by replicating the ₱537.00 for the non-agricultural worker while ₱500.00 a day for each of those in the agricultural sector a day in Metro Manila to the 18 regions in the country. He explained it is just one components of the BPBPP.

Guico and Representative Joseph Lara filed a bill for revocation of the Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Board (RTWPB) and replaced it with the standardization of the minimum wage law all over the country to solve the demographic malaise and the threat of the lethal CoViD-19 to the populace in the metropolis.

“Standardization of minimum wage is one but very important component of Balik Probinsya. There are more ingredients to this - infrastructure like wide roads and community development based on proper urban planning, establishment of reputable schools, healthcare facilities, incentives to investing in rural areas (tax holidays, and the like), efficient transportation system like Grab for example can be allowed to operate in the province, reliable public utilities like power, water, telecom, internet, others. But while rural areas will be developed, food security must equally be given importance. There must be limits to land conversions to give way to development. There should be proper zoning. Agricultural lands, especially irrigated lands must remain. Vertical development must be promoted in order to save space,” he stressed.

After being adopted by President Rodrigo Duterte through an Executive Order 114 the Senate Resolution authored by Senator Christopher Laurence “Bong” Go, a BPBPP Council was established and chaired by Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea and with Socio-Economic Planning Secretary Karl Chua as co-chairman.
The Council, as defined, shall “identify legislative, regulatory, and policy changes to promote balanced regional development and recommend to Congress the enactment of such reforms into law.
It must also coordinate with local government units to formulate policies and implement the program’s components.
The program’s key areas are empowerment of local industries; food security and agricultural productivity; social welfare, health and employment; and development of infrastructure.

ADVOCATES. Mindanao Development Authority Chief and Secretary Emmanuel F. Piñol (left photo) and Pangasinan Fifth District Congressman Ramon Guico, III are two fervent advocates of the Balik Probinsya, Bagong Pag-asa Program to decongest the densest National Capital Region.

The funding requirements of its existing programs, activities or projects (PAPs) shall be identified by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) or sourced from the agency heads’ respective appropriations.
To fund the Department of Agriculture (DA) various food security programs for example, Senator Go said that the DBM could consider allowing DA to realign the funds of the agriculture department in so far as the law permits, to ensure ample funds to implement DA’s existing programs supportive of BPBPP.

The ambitious plan to decongest Metro Manila had been a pipe dream of the past administrations since President Ferdinand Marcos in the 1970s.
In the 2010 to 2016 administration of President Benigno Aquino, III he had the failed Balik Probinsya Program – under the National Convergence Initiatives for Sustainable Rural Development. His aim was to support urban poor and provide more opportunities to uplift their standards of living.

 Piñol was optimistic that BPBPP will succeed because of the clear and present danger pose by CoViD-19.

“CoViD-19 changes all the perceptions. Even the idea of globalization the neo-liberal economists actually were affectedly embarrassed,” he cited.

 Piñol, said the more the government central planners allowed the development of the NCR the more the “probinsiyanos (migrants from the provinces) are attracted to try their economics luck there.

Mindanao Political Analyst Luvin Candari said that the factor that can lure the millions of workers in the National Capital Region is through an endeavor provided by the foreign and local investors in the export processing zone to be created in the seven pilot provinces where tax holidays, and other reliefs will motivate them to pour their monies.

“The government could not provide millions of jobs to those migrants from the metropolis via-à-vis this ambitious herculean job”.

Guico told this writer that he had a silver bullet to solve this demographic malaise.

He said that his town Binalonan, Pangasinan provided 22 hectares to host a Philippine Export Zone Authority (PEZA) sanctioned Sumi North-Philippines Wiring Systems Corporation (SNPWSC) that will provide ten to twelve thousands of direct jobs to the people of the eastern province.

 SNPWSC, located at an industrial park, was responsible for the robust growth of Tarlac City.

READ: How the Economic Zone catapults Tarlac City