Tobacco farmers in Ilocos Sur staged a picket protest at the National Tobacco Administration (NTA) office in Candon City to insist inclusion in the tripartite consultations on tobacco pricing.
Members of the Solidarity of Peasants Against Exploitation (STOP Exploitation) said they must be heard on the prices of their produce, demanding for a Php128 per kilo floor price of Virginia tobacco.
The group was joined in their protest action by the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), Alyansa dagiti Mannalon iti Ilocos Norte, Alyansa dagiti Mannalon ken Mangngalap ti La Union – AMMLU, Alyansa dagiti Mannalon iti Ilocos Norte, Kalipunan dagiti Mannalon Ken Mangngalap iti Probinsya ti Ilocos Sur and TIMEK Ilocos – Timmpuyog ken Namnama dagiti Babassit a Mangngalap.
The NTA reportedly excluded STOP Exploitation from pre-tripartite and Tobacco Tripartite Consultative Conference citing “limited capacity.”
The group and KMP said this is an insult to farmers and a clear attempt to exclude them from a process that directly affects their livelihood as well as their demands for fair contracts and the proper use of the tobacco excise tax..
“We are calling for a Php128 per kilo floor price of Virginia tobacco without classification. The grading system keeps farmgate prices down to an average of just Php97 per kilo, while companies can buy tobacco at Php100 to Php150 when it suits them,” STOP Exploitation regional spokesperson Julie Balangue said.
“The (current) classification system (in tobacco pricing) is nothing but a tool to cheat farmers,” she added.
STOP Exploitation also raised concerns over unfair contract provisions that restrict selling, prohibit protests, impose additional fees, and silence farmer complaints.
“The current contracts are shackles on farmers’ necks. Without fighting for just contracts and fair prices, we will remain enslaved to companies’ dictates,” Balangue added.
KMP said it is unjust and absurd for the NTA to bar tobacco farmers from participating in these consultations.
“Farmers have the longest experience and are the most affected by tobacco pricing decisions,” KMP chairperson Danilo Ramos said.
“Excluding them only exposes NTA’s bias for big corporations and its fear of accountability to the people,” Ramos added.
KMP and STOP Exploitation reiterated that the tobacco excise tax must directly benefit farmers and communities instead of being lost to corruption and projects irrelevant to their needs.
“The lifeblood of the tobacco industry comes from farmers. No farmers, no harvest. No harvest, no profit for companies. It is only just that farmers who sacrifice sweat and blood for this industry be at the center of decisions that affect their livelihood and future,” Ramos said.
Farmers vowed to sustain their campaign for fair prices, just contracts, subsidies, and genuine land reform, asserting that their voice in the tripartite process cannot be silenced. # (Raymund B. Villanueva)
