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Exploring the Cultural Landscape and Ethnic Boundaries of IPs in Mindanao*

Introduction

There are around 3,254,549 IPs in Mindanao and Sulu (NSO 1990) constituting about 22.8% of the total population. Thus, almost a fourth of the island’s present population is made up of so called IPs who have retained vestiges of their non-western cultures, suffer a cultural lag and, since they are not assimilated, constitute part of today’s minoritized cultural communities. Their growing minoritization in Philippine society has necessitated the adaption of radical measures such as Ancestral Domain in recognition of their cultural distinctiveness. This paper explores the native meanings of their cultural landscape such as territorial boundaries, cultural areas and niches,etc.

The Agricultural Worldview and the Concept of Stewardship of the Earth

A people’s belief is colored by its perceptions of the origins of the world and in life these beliefs are affirmed and sustained by one’s experiences. An agricultural worldview is necessarily circumscribed by the cycles of sowing and harvest and around these two main activities agricultural societies have built their myths and legends about the origins of the world. The myths of the Tagakaulo and B’laan were woven around a handful of earth and even body dirt from the gods as important elements of creation. For the Bagobo, the pestle and mortar for pounding rice were instrumental in the recreation of an old and decrepit world into a new one where the first peoples of the world called mona began to have babies even though they were already very old. The Ata of Talaingod believe that Manama created all things in this world. The first man and woman were created from blades of grass, woven together until the human figure was formed. Manama made four couples who became the ancestors of the Ata and other neighboring tribes (Cole 1913). A present version states that the first to be created out of soil was the earth. What *as left over of this material was made into the first man and woman. The third to be created was the chicken (Gloria & Magpayo 1997). The Dulangan Manobo of Lebak, Sultan Kudarat say that Naniula, the supreme god created all things, including man. Their god made everything in the world in order for man to live. All other gods called effi (spirits) are conceived:as protecting certain places or things such as caves or the nonoc (balite tree). These are the native shrines guarded by different effi whose permission must be sought before any activity in their domains is undertaken. The Higaunon of Bukidnon believe that Magbabaya created the world for men .and animals then the god delegated Talabugta whose name means ” – of the earth” to provide for the various needs of man. The Mamanua of Surigao fear the all- powerful god who is also called Magbabaya among other lesser supernaturals. The Mamanua who were originally hunters and gatherers have a great fear of thunderstorms. One of the awesome powers of Magbabaya is to make thunder and lightning which are held to be punishment for various transgressions such as the violation of taboos, e.g. incest. According to the Mamanua myth, in the beginning there was only one kind of man. Then lightning struck the earth and men. Those who were scorched black became the Mamanua (Maceda, 1964). Their great fear of thunderstorms has given rise to many beliefs such as driving the point of the bolo into the ground to stop a thunderstorm. They observed a special ritual for a full moon. As the moon waxes, they reduce fires to a smaller blaze out of respect for the celestial body and its phenomenon.

It would seem that the creators of the above mentioned myths have shied away from the notion of man as the overlord of creation as evidenced by the primacy of the earth (In creation man was only created next to earth or nature). Although these myths say that nature was primarily made for the use of man, man himself does not own it and uses it only with the permission of the god who made it. Moreover, the creator-god is not alone in the disposition or over lordship of nature’s bounty. At the beginning of time, there were lesser gods who were delegated and given authority over the resources of the earth. Man, the user of these resources is obliged to secure permission from the particular spirit which “owns” and exercises guardianship over the resource. The stewardship of the land and other goods of the earth does not belong to man but to the spirits or diwata, a class of lesser supernaturals with which man has a more or less direct relationship mediated only by the performance of specific rituals to secure the diwata‘s consent and goodwill. Man has unlimited freedom to any of these resources provided he/she performs the necessary rituals and ceremonies. The principle of reciprocity permeates the worldview reflected in these myths. No user is allowed to help himself or herself to any of the earth’s resources without the corresponding obligations which at the very least is the acknowledgement of the guardianship of the diwata or spirit concerned. Hence, there is no absolute ownership of earthly goods. As such, no one may arrogate to himself or herself the earth’s resources or use them to exhaustion. The precept that these resources belong to the gods require man to use them with respect to the real owners thus proscribing wantonness and violence in their use.

Self and Group Identity

In this cosmological worldview, man is seen as a creature whose identity is earthbound. Group identity is even more geographic and locational in its etymology, e.g. the Subanon of the Zamboanga Peninsula, the Matigsalog of Davao City and Tagakaulo of Davao del Sur are riverine peoples as indicated by their common use of the root word for river, i.e. suba, salug and ulo (sa tubig or headwaters). The Maranao and some Maguindanao are lakeside dwellers, ranao and lanao being words for lake. The Tausug of the Sulu Archipelago live where the ocean current (su-ug) favors their economic and trading activities. Similarly, the Samal Laut and the Badjaos are popularly known as sea nomads who spend a great deal of time at sea which is their chief source of livelihood. Forest peoples such as the Manguangan and Dulangan Manobo whose names are derivations of the word for forest (gulanga or dulanga) will have to be distinguished from those who live at the edge of forests namely the Mandaya and Mansaka, the root word daya and saka meaning interiors and “to go up”, respectively.

On the other hand, the names Manobo and Bagobo came from the root word for man, ubo (Ibid). While myths contain a people’s view of the world, legends explain the origin of places, things or natural phenomena. The group identity of the Bagobo of Sibulan in Davao del Sur may be understood from a legend about the Bagobo’s origin from the mythical beings called mona, particularly from the first Bagobo couple named Tuglay and Tuglibong whose descendants were almost decimated by a long and severe drought. However, the last pair of children was saved by a mythical sustainer of life, the last stalk of sugarcane whose limitless juice revived the last pair who lived long enough to beget the present Bagobo of Sibulan.

Although the legend is localized, the etiology explains as well the origins of other peoples of Mindanao for the legend says that during the long drought, the children of Tuglay and Tuglibong left Sibulan in pairs, to live in other parts of Mindanao. Thus they begot the present descendants of the whole island. The legend is significant in that the explanation of the origin of the Bagobo is anthropomorphic. According to Spanish chronicles, the Bagobo of Sibulan were one of the few peoples in Mindanao who could trace their genealogy to eleven generations of forebears. The Bagobo are one of the few peoples whose group identity is not linked to a geographic feature in the environment even though Sibulan or Subu-wan is the name of the river where their historic settlement is located up to the present time. It may be that the Bagobo have some claims to a kind of cultural hegemony in southeast Mindanao. The Jangan and the Matigsalog of Davao City profess affinity with the Bagobo and would often answer to the same name.

The Manobo on the other hand, are the most dispersed people in Mindanao. They are most numerous in the two Agusan provinces and are found as well in the Misamis, Davao and Cotabato provinces. There are smaller groups who have distinguished themselves with a somewhat different identity, e.g. the Dulangan Manobo of Sultan Kudarat province, and the Arumanon and Kirentekan Manobo of Cotabato Province. The qualifying appellation indicates the place where they are found.

Culture Areas and Economic Niches

Geographers and culture specialists have paid particular attention to small differences in the environment such as seashore vs. inland, hills vs. floodplains, grasslands vs. forests, etc. that have great significance in identifying culture areas. Culture areas are generally carved out of a specific geographic space to serve as human habitation while the interplay between space and a human group produces a culture (Wagner and Miksell 1962). However, a culture area is more than just the geographic space because of the paramount role played by a human group whose interactions with the physical space produce the aggregate of human habits which is known as culture. Environmentalists believe that the human potential is to a large extent influenced, if not determined by the kind of environment which a human group uses for habitation.

Under such a framework, coastal peoples will be fishermen and boat-builders such as the Tausug of the Sulu Archipelago who are traditionally maritime and sea-going peoples. Upland inhabitants such as the Mandaya, Mansaka and Manobo are horticulturists, hunters and gatherers. They may be joined by the Manguangan and Dulangan Manobo and most probably the Jangan whose forested environs would predispose them to again, horticulture, hunting and gathering. Still some IPs live at the edge of forests rather than inside them.

The Higaunon whose name means “inhabitants of the thicket” may be cited as an example. The Higaunon cultivate and likewise exploit the forests for livelihood. The Subanon, Tagakaulo, Dibabawon and Matigsalog who are riverine dwellers would live close to the other groups who exploit the river and a similar environment and would thus exhibit many kindred traits with the peoples with whom they interact. Lakeside inhabitants such as the Maranao, Maguindanao and T’boli would have a tendency to be more culturally contained with a more pronounced cultural distinctiveness.

All these do not imply that a culture in order to be distinct must be absolutely unique or have a monopoly of certain cultural traits. In a much broader sense a culture area is not simply contained within the specific environment that a group inhabits. Many cultural traits are disposed to expansiveness and often exceed ethnic and geographic boundaries. The phenomenon of cultural borrowing and diffusion explains the wide distribution of traits just as similar environments could evolve the same cultural characteristics.

The presence of other cultures in the same culture area gives rise to a heightened cultural awareness which is aroused by contact with other cultural groups ( Weiss 1962). Ethnic boundaries persist despite the constant flow of peoples between them (Barth 1970). Weiss had said that the fixing of boundaries is based not only on objective overt differences but on a more subjective motive which underlies the feeling of ethnic distinctiveness. This is the instinct of self-preservation which brings us to the idea of economic niches.

For purposes of this paper, an economic niche is synonymous with culture area given an ecological and  environmental context. In a scenario of interacting cultural groups exploiting the same economic niche, e.g. kaingin (horticulture) in upland environments any of the following may occur (Ibid) :

1. They may occupy distinct niches in the environment and be in minimal competition over its resources. Interdependence will be greatly limited and articulated only through trade.

2. They may . monopolize separate territories .in which case competition over the same resource will be articulated in politics.

3. When two or more groups are in occupation of the same niche with time, one will tend to displace the other.

If an ethnographic map of Mindanao and Sulu were to be drawn we would see that all the above are observable at different times in the culture history of Mindanao. More than a hundred years ago, the description of the island would fit the first two scenarios while the present situation would be aptly represented by the third and last description. The present scenario would thus argue for the recognition of the indigenous rights of Ancestral Lands and Domain as a fundamental right based on prior occupancy. Considering that the displacement of the original inhabitants took place under duress by means of the superior and different culture of the successive occupants, a recognition of the indigenous rights of IPs has become incumbent on the mainstream society. Since the displacement of native peoples occurred simultaneously with the gradual demise of their customs and traditions, this recognition of native rights must of necessity recall and reinstate the autochthonous precepts and meanings of the old social order for only then can such rights be operationalized because they are couched in native meanings that are understood by IPs.

Ethnic and Territorial Boundaries

In a study of 10 indigenous communities around Mt. Apo, one of the important components of the political order was the question of Ancestral Domain in which the subject of territorial boundaries drew the most comments from the IPs. The Bagobo of Lumondao (Davao City) were incredulous and with considerable skepticism immediately declared that they did not believe that Ancestral Domain would be implemented. The T’boli of Lake Sebu were ignorant about it as were the Ata of Talaingod. The T’boli said that the only basis for making territorial claims among them was a certification from their barangay captain. The findings of the study showed that for most of the IPs, individual and family property rights conform to the present legal requirements of Torens title and are marked by the muhon (concrete marker) while political boundaries are those defined by political demarcations into regions, provinces, cities, municipalities and barangays rather than the culture area of the Manobo, Bagobo, B’laan, etc.

On the other hand, five groups of IPs had clear ideas about what constitute their respective ancestral domains. The Matigsalog of Davao City stated that their cultural and ancestral domain covers the territories around the Davao River and that any movement of peoples would require a redelineation of their ancestral domain. It may be that some Matigsalog are still practicing horticulture or kaingin which requires field rotation involving periodic movements of peoples. It was surmised that the statement described the ancient methods of extensive cultivation requiring new swidden fields at the end of one or two agricultural cycles. This ancient indigenous technology was associated with frequent movements of peoples in search of new and fertile clearings. The abandonment of old swidden fields allowed them to regenerate and climax once more into mature forests.

The Matigsalog’s claim to cultural homogeneity and identity is based on the traditional exploitation of the Davao river. Notwithstanding the presence of other groups such as the Dibabawon who exploit the upper (ibabaw) reaches of the river and despite the frequent movements of both peoples exploiting the same resource with the same technology, it is remarkable that each has maintained a separate group identity. This can only mean that each group has kept to its own culture area and economic niche. Culture contact is carried on in observance of ethnic boundaries and territorial limits. When ethnic boundaries are breached and territorial limits crossed over, this would mean that a radical change in the group’s social order has taken place to such an extent that a redelineation of the group’s ethnic boundaries would be required as the Matigsalog said.

The Jangan regard the whole district of Calinan as their ancestral domain. Up to the present, they constitute the biggest IPs in this District. Even as they conceded the loss of their lands- to Visayan and other Christian migrants the Jangan enumerated a list of cultural tests, e.g. having been born in the area, being able to speak the Jangan language and possession of the Jangari native attire, that would legitimize one’s claim to ancestral territorial rights in the area.

The Spanish writers of the 19th century perceived an affinity between the Jangan of Calinan and the Tagabawa of Davao del Sur and North Cotabato provinces. Both answer to the name Bagobo as already mentioned earlier in this paper. The apparent culture area would be the environs of Mt. Apo. Then as now, the Jangan are found north of the volcano while the Tagabawa inhabit the southern regions. Some Manobo groups are also found on the western flank which is the North Cotabato side. The economic niche is also historically horticulture which has survived at least for some Tagabawa and Manobo in spite of migrant inroads. The Jangan, being nearest to the urban centers of Davao City appeared to have adapted to a more modern economic niche – employment.

All three groups look to Mt. Apo as the historic and cultural roots of their respective group identities. The Bagobo mythical origin is steeped in folklore about their gods, Mandarangan and his consort, Darago who live on Mt. Apo and to whom human sacrifices were periodically offered by the Bagobo of ancient times. The antiquity of the Bagobo of Sibulan has already been mentioned. The river Sibulan derives its source from the lofty heights of Mt. Apo.

The Manobo regard the volcano as the “navel of the world” emphasizing the critical role of Mt. Apo in their birth and survival as a people. Although the Manobo are widely dispersed their cultural areas in the different parts of Mindanao are well-defined and historically established. More than a hundred years ago the Spaniards already noted that among the Manobo of Agusan, territorial boundaries were strictly observed. The Spanish missionaries in fact regarded the Manobo’s stubborn attachment to their settlement as the biggest obstacle to resettlement or reduccion. It required all the charisma of the missionary to persuade a Manobo to leave his home in the fastnesses of the forests and mountains. The tenacity with which they clung to their ancestral homes and lands was considered by the missionaries as proof that the Manobo believed and exercised rights of ownership over property. They marked out mountains, rivers, and wide spaces of land as their property to be used only by families and members of their tribes (Cartas de los Padres Misioneros de la Compania de Jesus de la Mission de Filipinas, 1897).

The present Manobo cited in the aforementioned study said that their burial grounds are considered as markers of their lands and territorial boundaries. The burial caves of the Dulangan Manobo at Salangsang, Lebak (Sultan Kudarat province) would then be an important landmark for delineating the territorial boundaries of the Dulangan Manobo.

Among the Higaunon, communal territorial boundaries were strictly observed to the extent that no Higaunon would pass the territory of a datu who was not his chief. It was customary to carry the quiap, a large spear encrusted with silver and whose lower end was made of metal. For a token fee, it was given to those who needed to travel through the lands of other chiefs who when shown the quiap immediately recognized it as belonging to another chief and therefore a peer. Hence, not only was safe conduct allowed to the travelers but some amenities had to be provided as well to him or her as custom’ dictated (Blair and Robertson, 1907).

The B’laan can identify certain streams , rivers, hilltops and other landmarks as territorial boundaries. They also named the plant called lagotonon as a boundary marker. In the study, the B ‘laan were one of those who were able to articulate their 138 perceptions of the government and its impact on IPs. The B ‘laan observed that the devolution of political power to local units resulted in a more effective control over the IPs social and political life. Reflecting on the overall impact of the modern Philippine government on native peoples, the B ‘laan said that due to population increases the natives’ territorial lands had to be re-apportioned among the present inhabitants who include non-native migrants. As a result, their lands became increasingly smaller while the contraction of IP territories in turn caused a diaspora of native peoples.

In the 19th century, the Spanish missionaries suggested that the original home of the B’laan was the region around Lake Buluan which they shared with the Maguindanao, a large Muslim group. Today, B’laan communities are found all over the provinces of Davao del Sur, South Cotabato and Sarangani. Over this extensive culture area they have been able to preserve their traditional economic niche of horticulture without surrendering or losing ethnic identity to other groups of IPs as well as migrant.

Among the Ata the antiquity of residence determine territorial claims. A three generation cycle was said to be sufficient to establish such an antiquity. In addition, the testimony of one’s relations, friends and acquaintances help establish the validity of the claims. The testimonies of their datus and elders also validate claims while planting fruits and bamboo trees help secure territorial boundaries.

The traditional culture area of the Ata was the Tuganay-Libuganon-Salug river complex in what is now the modern province of Davao. The vicissitudes of history have caused some changes in this ancient landscape for today the people known as Ata are mainly concentrated in the modern municipality of Talaingod. The present Ata is one of the most severely threatened by marginalization and minoritization. Over the last ten years, the Ata population has dwindled from 1.2% of the province’ population to 0.07% in 1990 (NSO 1980 and 1990).

Four other groups, namely, the Bagobo of Marilog, T’boli of Lake Sebu, Tagabawa of Makilala and the Tagakaulo of Sta. Maria failed to articulate their thoughts on Ancestral Domain. It must be pointed out that with the exception of the T’boli, the abovementioned groups, in particular the Bagobo, have a high incidence of intermarriage with Visayan and other Christian groups. The Bagobo had already expressed their doubt about the implementation of Ancestral Domain. At the-time of this study, the Bagobo of Lumondao was a severely threatened community. The peace and order situation was precarious while outbreaks of cholera and dysentery put grave strains on the community. It could be that their responses were colored by the circumstances they were experiencing at that time.

A surprisingly passive reaction on Ancestral Domain was that of the T’boli who had the most well-preserved traditions among the nine groups. They did not appear to be very communicative about Ancestral Domain, except to say that a certification from their barangay captain was sufficient to establish a land claim. From the observations made by this researcher, the T’boli seemed to know least about Ancestral Domain. Although a local radio station was making daily broadcast about Ancestral Domain just outside the municipal boundaries, within the barangay community at Lamdalag, the T’boli respondents did not appear to be aware of it. It may be mentioned in this connection that although the T’boli were governed by municipal leaders who were also T’ boli, at Lamdalag the barangay captain was a Visayan who has lived with them for a long time. During the barangay assembly for the introduction of this research project, the barangay leaders who were non-T’ boli spoke on behalf of the T’ boli respondents who remained passive throughout the entire assembly proceedings.

Undoubtedly, Ancestral Domain rights will be a major breakthrough towards stabilizing IP communities in Mindanao. It will ease the pains of acculturation and provide for a more orderly transition from marginalized communities to integrated cultural units within the national body polity. A stable cultural minority is an asset to the society as a whole and is to be preferred to marginalized groups with a dependent status.

Concluding Remarks

This brief paper has explored the native meanings of ethnic and territorial boundaries. As have been shown, the concept of territorial boundaries is intrinsic in each culture. The delineation of ethnic boundaries cannot be confined to geographic interpretations. It is necessary to look into the characteristics of the culture that give substance and meaning to ordinary terms. One must first consider the worldview which describes when world in native terms and categories. These terms and categories are native abstractions of reality and are often clothed in metaphorical terms although sometimes these may be expressed in anthropomorphic speech. It is instructive to consider the group identity or name which locates the particular group in a specific geographic context. In turn, an understanding of this geographic milieu will explain specific cultural traits that result from the interplay between the environmental space and the human group that inhabits it. This paper has shown that the different group identities of Ws in Mindanao indicate their respective culture areas and economic niches. Their myths, legends. and traditions demonstrate the antiquity of their bonds with the environment. Overall these, their view of the world defines fundamental precepts and principles such as the spirits’ stewardship of the earth. These fundamentals have served as their guidelines in appropriating and protecting their social space.

North Cotabato Rural Enterprise Development Program II

A Terminal Review

Introduction

                Of the 60.5 million Filipinos, approximately 36 million or 60 percent live in the rural areas and are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood. Sixty-five percent of the rural population live in the lowlands and coastal areas while the rest are in the uplands.
While various development policies and programs of the Philippine government since the postwar years have stressed overall income and growth throughout the country, these have been  mainly concentrated in Metro Manila. The rural population is at a relative disadvantage when compared to their urban counterparts. Various studies have revealed that more than half of the rural families live below the poverty line (compared to only one-fifth of urban families).
Analyzing the nature, extent, and trends of rural poverty within the context of development, Sison and Varela thus concluded that “a great proportion of the poorest of the poor is found in the rural sector” , citing both “the Inherent and persistent socio-economic and political structures which exclude the poorest segment of the rural population from participating in productive economic activity”, including government policies in support of the  postwar development strategy which was generally biased against agriculture.

Such scenarios have thus sent the appropriate signals to both the public and private sector to address the needs of these marginal members of Philippine society caught in the vicious cycle of poverty and low productivity, lack of access to resources, and subsequently inequality.

As with other government and non-government organizations which have recognized the need to improve the farmers’ access to necessary resources, the Diocese of Kidapawan in North Cotabato launched the North Cotabato Rural Enterprise Development Program (NCREDP) in 1989 to improve the income and living conditions of the population through five self-help community cooperatives.

The primary goals of the program consisted of increasing farmers’ income through the provision of non-collateral, low interest loans, and developing self-sustaining cooperatives that could serve the credit and marketing needs of the members, including the upgrading of farmers’ skills through more productive farming technology and strengthening the cooperatives’ technical and managerial skills.

The objectives of the program were:
1. to extend financial and technical assistance to at least five self-help cooperatives.

2. to extend assistance to at least 550 farmers from the five self-help cooperatives and thus enable them to realize increases in income by at least P1,910 per hectare per cropping.

3. to assist at least 72 percent (or 400) of the beneficiaries to generate a capital build-up of at least P4,500 each out of individual share capital contributions.

4. to generate at least P690,000 capital build-up out of the members’ share capital contributions.

5. to train 550 farmers on appropriate/productive farm technologies and management skills, including value

6. to train at least 10 leaders from the 5 self-help groups on organizational and basic cooperative management, enterprise management, leadership, community organizing, financial management, and credit and marketing operations.

7. to assist farmer-beneficiaries in avoiding at least two layers of exploitative traders or middlemen through marketing assistance.

8. to assist these self-help groups to develop into full-fl cooperatives, each with a legal personality and able to undertake socio-economic activities, and

9. to assist at least 5 cooperatives to organize into a federation, with goals to serve and undertake activities addressing the needs of the member cooperatives.

In an endeavor to increase the income of the farmer beneficiaries of the five (5) self-help and self-sustaining cooperatives through loans, training and technical assistance, the following schematic framework has evolved:

INPUTS                        OUTPUTS
Loans                            Increased income of the farmer beneficiaries

Training                        Development of self-sustaining cooperatives

As indicated in the diagram, program inputs (loans, training and technical assistance) will facilitate increasing the income of the farmer-beneficiaries and subsequently develop self-sustaining cooperatives. The loans will provide the farmer -beneficiaries the necessary financial assistance to increase their income, consequently contributing to the development of self-sustaining cooperatives. Training and technical assistance will equip the farmer-beneficiaries with the appropriate knowledge, attitudes and skills in increasing farm income and helping in the development of self-sustaining cooperatives.

Given the above, the present report hopes to provide the necessary feedback information for the Diocese of Kidapawan, by assessing over-all program-goals vis-a-vis results, particularly in increasing income of farmer-beneficiaries and developing self-sustaining cooperatives.

On the whole, the study seeks to determine the nature and extent of attainment of objectives of the North Cotabato Enterprise Development Program. Specifically it aims to:

1. identify indicators necessary in evaluating and maintaining the progress, results and impact of the program.

2. identify and assess the project’s accomplishments vis-a-vis objectives set, including its strengths and weaknesses.

3. assess the effectivity of the strategies and approaches used in the program.

4. determine the program’s impact in capital build-up, participation of beneficiaries in the program decision-making and planning process, and in their respective organization of cooperatives.

5. determine other factors affecting program performance.

6. formulate recommendations to improve the project scheme.

As in any systematically organized program or project, the assessment or evaluation of program goals and results is regarded as on integral program-component. At its terminal stage, the importance of any evaluation activity is underscored by the following considerations:

1. As a cost-saving measure, evaluation helps to determine whether the time, money and effort expended for the project are justifiable and merit continuance or possible expansion in other areas.

2. Evaluation similarly identifies strengths and weaknesses of the project so that appropriate corrective measures can be formulated by program-planners. Likewise, feedback from the beneficiaries will provide significant guidelines in the development of similar projects in the future.

The pretest-posttest research design was used in this study. This design facilitated the determination of changes introduced by the NCREDP among the farmer-members of the five (5) self-help cooperatives, particularly the changes effected by the loans, training and technical assistance provided by the program.

The present terminal study was conducted in five (5) of the 14 areas where the Diocese of Kidapawan has organized cooperatives. The study-sites consisted of New Cebu in President Roxas, Antipas, Magpet, Matalam and M’lang, selected on the basis of their management potentials, good leadership, desire to improve economically, and willingness to abide by the project’s policies and guidelines

Cooperative managers and the farmer-beneficiaries served as the respondents of the study. The five cooperative managers provided information on the mechanics of coordination, the facilitating factors/problems encountered in the coordinative efforts, and the actual bottlenecks experienced in the implementation of the program. The farmer-beneficiaries, on the other hand, served as the source of assessment of the program’s financial assistance, training and technical assistance.

The purposive sampling design was used in this study. Prior to the field interview, a list of beneficiaries was secured fr m the five (5) self-help cooperatives through the CRS Mindanao Regional Office, after which elimination of beneficiaries not covered during the 1989 baseline survey was done. Baseline interviewee who, however, were not program beneficiaries were likewise considered in the terminal evaluation. This was to facilitate comparison of changes among the farmer-beneficiaries of the program. Of the baseline interviewees, a total of 329 respondents (i.e. 159 farmer-beneficiaries and 170 non-beneficiaries) were interviewed for the 1992 terminal study. This was due to the deaths, transfer of residence, or refusal of the other baseline interviewees to be interviewed.

Three methods were employed in the collection of data. These included (1) a review of secondary data-sources (i.e. annual reports, financial reports, and other pertinent reports of the NCREDP), (2) interviews of the managers of the five (5) self-help cooperatives, and, (3) interviews of both program-beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries.

A study guide was used for the records review, including the interviews of the five (5) cooperative managers. A structured interview schedule, translated into Cebuano was used for the farmer-beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries.

The interview schedule included the following main topics:

I.     Personal Data

II.     Farm Data

III.    Farm Practices

IV.    Production

V.    Post-harvest Facilities

VI.    Marketing

VII. Trainings Attended

VIII. Technical Assistance (Hands On)

IX. Loan Assistance

X. Participation

XI. Comments and Recommendations for the Cooperative

XII. Income and Savings.

Univariate and bivariate tables were used to analyze and compare baseline and terminal data. Simple frequency and percentage distributions, including central tendency measures, were also used.

Accomplishments of the Five Self-Help Cooperatives

A total of P6,102,861.99 worth of loans was extended to 1,924 individual farmers from Phases I to V, with New Cebu (P1,646,450.75) and M’lang (P1,190,041.60) reporting the highest amount of loans received and Magpet, the lowest (P1,028,945.60). As a whole, the average collection rate of loans released from Phases Ito V was 76.6 percent (or P4,672,907.59), with M’lang and New Cebu reporting the highest rate of repayments (92.4% or P1,099,994.74 and 80.9% or P133,315.75, respectively), and with Magpet (61.2% or P630,143.92) and Matalam (64.7% or P728,284.14), the lowest. Such loans incurred an interest of P526,455.30. M’lang registered the highest loan-interest collected (101.5%), and Antipas, the lowest (64%).

The total capital build-up generated from Phases I to V was P1,846,005.80, of which a little over one fourth (26.4% or P487,500) was contributed by New Cebu farmer-beneficiaries. Antipas contributed the lowest (16.4% or P303,750). However, more than a third of the total capital build-up generated (38.5% or P710,150.84) was collected, with New Cebu registering the highest amount (40.1% or P195,561.25) and Magpet, the lowest (23.5% or P83,940.85).

Reviewing the trends, however, the rate of collection for loan releases, loan-interests and capital build-up generally decreased from Phase I to Phase V. Such patterns were indicative somehow of the capacity and type of monitoring tools, including the policies which the project management has installed.

A review of records revealed that a total of 2,086 farmer-members were provided financial assistance from Phases I to VI. The number of farmer-members who provided financial assistance increased continuously from Phase I (286) to Phase III (467) then decreased to 462 in Phase VI. New Cebu reported the highest number of farmer-beneficiaries (547) and Antipas, the lowest (326).

An analysis of the names of the reported 2,086 beneficiaries showed a total of 802 farmer-members actually provided financial assistance, with the lowest number of farmer-members in M’lang (110) and the highest in New Cebu (228). The data further revealed that four (4) out of five (5) self-help cooperatives had assisted more than the targeted 110 farmer-members that should have been provided financial assistance by the end of the three-year program. M’lang provided assistance to the required number of 110 farmer-members.

Further analysis of the status of the listed beneficiaries revealed the following categories:

1. Continuing Beneficiaries
1a – availed of the loan from the first phase to the last phase.

1b – availed of the loan from any one of the phases (2,3,4 and 5) to the last phase.
2. Drop-outs
2a availed of loan in the first phase then dropped.

2b availed of loan in two consecutive phases then dropped.

2c – availed of loan in three consecutive phases then dropped.

2d – availed of loan in four consecutive phases then dropped.

2e – availed of loan in five consecutive phases then dropped

2f – availed of loan in five phases, returned, then dropped.
3. Last phase beneficiaries (availed of the last phase only)
4. Return-beneficiaries
4a availed of loan in an earlier phase, dropped, then returned at a later phase up to the last phase.

4b – availed of loan at an earlier phase/s, dropped, then returned in the last phase
4c availed of loan in an earlier phase/s, dropped, returned, dropped, then returned in the last phase

The highest percentages were drop-out beneficiaries (61.7% or 495 ), followed by the continuing beneficiaries (21.9% or 219 farmer-beneficiaries), “last phase beneficiaries” (8.7% or 70) and return-beneficiaries (7.6% or 61 farmer-beneficiaries). The case of the drop-out beneficiaries was explained by the cooperative managers as caused mainly by the beneficiaries’ failure to repay their loans, transfer of residence, or the pawning of farm inputs to other farmers.

By the end of the program, a capital build-up of P690,000 per cooperative was projected. However, records reported that only M’lang attained such an objective with a capital build-up of P707,643.36, an amount higher by PI7,643.36 than the projected capital build-up. New Cebu reported more than half (55.8% or P385,129.54) of the projected P690,000. Matalam indicated the lowest capital build-up (26.2%).

Though only M’lang attained the P690,000 capital build-up which each cooperative-beneficiary should have generated at the end of the three-year program, it is commendable to note that all of the cooperative-beneficiaries exerted efforts to attain the set capital build-up as evidenced by the increases in capital build-up from their baseline to terminal figures. The initial capital build-up of the five self-help cooperatives increased more than three times G63.8%) by the end of the three-year program, with New Cebu indicating the highest increase (906.8%) and Antipas, the lowest (134.8%).

At the end of the three-year program, it was envisioned that each farmer-beneficiary should have generated a capital build-up of P4,500 through the financial assistance program. The records show that a total of 802 out of 1,891 farmer-members were extended financial assistance, resulting in a total of P1 ,067,205.72 or an average of P1,330.70 per beneficiary capital share.  The non- beneficiaries, on the other hand, generated a total capital spare of 692,356.46 or an average of P635.55 per non-beneficiary; ai figure nearly half of the mean capital share per beneficiary.

The data further revealed that while the New Cebu farmer- beneficiaries generated the highest amount of capital build-up (P455,082.79) and the Matalam farmer-beneficiaries, the lowest (Pi55,850.95), the M’lang non-beneficiaries reported the highest amount of capital build-up generated (P429,781.23) and those from New Cebu, the lowest (P92,211.37).

Given the targeted amount of capital build-up each farmer- beneficiary should have generated by the end of the three-year program, data revealed that there were more farmer-beneficiaries (n=32) who had generated an amount equal to or greater than the P4,500 from the four survey sites (Antipas, Matalam, M’lang and New Cebu) compared to non-beneficiaries (n=17). This seems to imply that the financial assistance provided was truly helpful in generating the capital build-up for some farmer-beneficiaries as forced savings.

Trainings
The three-year program likewise addressed the need for institutional development, i.e. through various training activities for both cooperative leaders and farmer-clients.

As insurance for the effective management of the activities designed for the program, program implementors outlined various trainings for the leaders of the cooperatives. At least eight types of trainings were conducted for the cooperative leaders. These (included the “Trainors’ Training”, “Financial-related”, “Marketing Management”, “Basic Management Course”, “Consumer Management”, “Skills Development-related”, ‘Technical-related” and “Cooperative Development Agenda”.

The most frequently mentioned trainings conducted for the cooperative leaders were “Financial-related” (28 sessions) followed by “Skills Development Training (12 sessions), ‘Trainors’ Training” (8 sessions), and “Marketing Management” (6 sessions).

Antipas indicated the most varied number of trainings conduct^ for the cooperative leaders (7 types), with M’lang and New Cebu the lowest number of trainings conducted for the cooperative leaders.

The number of cooperative leader-participants attending the different sessions conducted ranged from one to 59 participants. Training related to financial management had a total of 59 participants, followed by ‘Trainers’ Training” (35 participants), and “Skills Development Training” (17 participants). Two participants mentioned attending the session on “Cooperative Development Agenda”.

On the part of the program beneficiaries, the training program hoped to provide them the necessary information relative to the acquisition of various skills to enhance farming strategies and consequently to help increase their farm income. The records indicated at least 16 types of trainings provided the farmer- beneficiaries, with “Pre-membership Seminars (PMS)” being most mentioned (31 sessions), followed by the “PMS and Refresher Course” (21 sessions), and those related to “Farm Management and Budgeting” (15 sessions).

Matalam cooperatives conducted the greatest variety pf trainings for the beneficiaries (11 types of trainings), with Antipas, the lowest (6 types of trainings).

The ‘Pre-membership Seminar” was reported to be the most attended cooperative-training, not only among the beneficiaries but the non-beneficiaries as well (737 participants), followed by the “Pre-membership Seminars and Refresher Course” (615 participants) and those on “Farm Management and Budgeting” (374 participants).

The GKK-KFI Terminal Report, dated October 5,1992, revealed that the farmers had successfully minimized establishing credit and marketing relationships with exploitative traders. This could  perhaps be due to the marketing linkages the five self-help cooperatives had established in response to the marketing needs of the members. An interview with the manage of the Antipas  cooperative confirmed that a direct marketing linkage with Manila-based buyers had been explored for their com produce.

all five self-help cooperatives have successfully acquired a legal personality, i.e. they have been officially registered with the Cooperative Development Authority. The Magpet cooperative was registered in the Rural Cooperative Development Administration Office (RCDAG) at the time the program was implemented.

The program envisioned that the five self-help cooperatives would form into a federation to effectively serve the needs of the members. However, an interview with four cooperative managers^ revealed that the formation of a federation for the five self-help cooperatives did not materialize inasmuch as a federation of the cooperatives in Davao del Sur and Cotabato was already in existence. As a result of the discussions held among the NCREDP- based cooperative managers, the five self-help cooperatives are now part of the Cotabato-Davao del Sur Federation of Cooperatives (CDSFC).

Membership of the cooperatives increased significantly from its baseline status of 764 individual members and 22 group- members. Individual members increased more than two-fold (i.e., by 1,127 or 147.5%), while group-membership almost doubled in the New Cebu cooperative. M’lang reported the highest increase in individual membership (449%), and New Cebu, the lowest (37.5%).

By the end of the three-year program all the . cooperatives reported increases in the total capital share of the members (Pi,844,977.04) from its baseline figures (P339,651). This may be attributed to the increasing membership in the five self-help cooperatives. The cooperative in New Cebu reported a  significant increase in the total capital share of the members, increasing at least 9 times (906.8%) from its baseline level of P38,260 by the end of the three-year program

The reported current assets of the cooperatives likewise revealed significant increases. New Cebu increased 35 times (3,511.2%) in current assets (P2,482,074.19) from its baseline level of P68,733.30. Matalam showed the lowest increase in current assets (187.8%).

Except for Antipas and Matalam, all the other cooperatives registered positive net incomes. Antipas and Matalam indicated deficits (91.8% and 171.3%, respectively) from their baseline net income (P31,234 and P241,350.12, respectively).

The positive net income earners showed New Cebu earning a net income 96 times higher (9610.1% or P275,506.18) compared to its baseline net income of P2,866.85, with M’lang the lowest (54.2%).

It is interesting to note that by the end of the three-year program, the cooperatives generally had not reported any new operational activities other than those established during the mid term review. Production credit appeared to be the only additional operational activity among the cooperatives.

M’lang did not report any specific regular marketing linkages at the time of the survey. Any accumulated farm produce was directly sold to those offering higher farm-gate prices.s Over and above their local (e.g. AMC in Kidapawan) and Davao City-based marketing linkages, the other four cooperatives (i.e. Antipas, Magpet, Matalam and New Cebu) had linked with a specific group, the so-called “Big Seven”, in the interest of increasing the volume of farm produce necessary to meet the demands of the established marketing outfits in Manila. Their first shipment of 11 vans of corn (with 250 sacks per van) to Manila was made on October 5, 1992. 6 Such efforts of the four cooperatives suggest a certain level of business-oriented management capabilities among the cooperative managers, including a strong sense of service and commitment not only to the individual cooperative members per se but to their respective cooperative-organizations as well.

Various literature on cooperatives report that one compounding factor in the low return of investment of the farmers in farm production is the non-availability of post-harvest facilities ( F). The availability of post-harvest facilities somehow determine the extent of marketing assistance needed by the farmers in the interest of increasing their incomes. Access to PHF may thus develop among the farmers various marketing skills, e.g. deciding when and where to sell their farm produce to ensure high income returns.

Among the cooperatives, Matalam and Magpet appeared to have limited post-harvest facilities. Matalam maintains a warehouse while Magpet just recently purchased a “three-fourths” mini hauler-truck. The rest reported owning more post-harvest facilities. M’lang has a warehouse under construction, a solar drier with a capacity of 100 bags of either rice or corn, one 10-wheeler hauler-truck purchased through a loan from the Land Bank, one 6-wheeler truck, a one-ton truck and a jitney. Antipas, likewise reported a 6-wheeler hauler-truck, a “three-fourths” type hauler, a drier with a capacity of 60 sacks, a corn sheller, and a warehouse which can store 1,800 sacks of corn or palay. New Cebu was able to acquire the following post-harvest facilities: one thresher, one drier that can accommodate 180 sacks of palay or corn, a 6-wheeler hauler-truck, a “three-fourths” type of hauler, two motorcycles, a sheller, and a warehouse with a capacity of 3,000 bags of farm produce.

In the absence of the records on “Farmers’ Income Analysis Sheets” from Phases I to VI, Phase VI income analysis was used instead to present the interplay of farm expenses, gross and net incomes. The gross expenses per hectare ranged from the lowest, P3,816, (Magpet) to as high as P9,541 (M’lang). The total gross farming income per hectare for the Phase Di period was established at P9,399.97 or P2,344.50 a month, with M’lang the highest (P19,543.38), followed by New Cebu (P7,577.93). Antipas reported the lowest total gross farming income per hectare (P4,820.23). The mean net income per hectare was P3,471.31 or P867.83 monthly. Again, M’lang appeared to have earned the highest mean net farming income per hectare (P7,723.13) while Antipas indicated the lowest (P886.75).

Generally, the terminal review revealed that the average gross farming income per hectare decreased compared to the baseline data, with only M’lang showing an increase in average gross farming income per hectare from its baseline level. However, the average net farming income showed an increase (P3,471.31) from its baseline level of P2,916 per hectare or a 19 percent (19%) increase during the three year period. New Cebu and M’lang showed an increase in mean net farming income per hectare compared to their baseline performance.

The low performance relative to the gross and net farming income per hectare may be attributed to the long dry spell experienced by the farmers from 1991 to 1992, particularly in those survey sites where the main farm produce is corn. The drought-period discouraged corn-farmers to plant and harvest their farm produce. The majority of the individual farmers from these areas thus reported having negative gross and net farming income, with the different suggesting the amount of farm inputs utilized in anticipation of rainy season which never came.

More than half (58.2% or 237 farmers) of those who received financial assistance reported income decreases from the previous cropping (Phase III). Specifically, more than half of those loan-beneficiaries revealed lower farm incomes in Antipas and Matalam compared to their baseline income.

Among those reporting farm income increases, a 140.3 percent increase per hectare was indicated, with Magpet (108.7%), M’lang (152.5%) and New Cebu (199.7%) reporting larger increases from their respective baseline level. Those reporting decreases in farming income from the previous income generally revealed a 70.5 percent decrease. Magpet farmer-beneficiaries showed the highest decrease (115.9%) from previous income and M’lang, the lowest (36.1%).

The Five-Self Help Cooperatives

San Vicente Ferrer Consumers Cooperative, Inc. (Antipas).

Having organized four cooperative satellites, this coop has started the construction of a canteen that’ will serve b staff and the students from the nearby school, including residents interested in availing of the canteen services. three barrio-based cooperatives have identified this cooper that with which they want to be affiliated. These cope have been provided marketing assistance, i.e. purchase of commodities from Davao City with corresponding charges, as service fees and transportation costs, ranging from P5 to P10 per box or the like. It has purchased 400 square meters of land for P20,000 and increased its staff to 19.

San Jose Katilingban Consumers Cooperative, Inc. (Magpet).

During the first quarter of 1992, this cooperative transferred to a new location (near the market) from the original office provided by the Catholic rectory, making their services more available and accessible to the members. A newly-hired driver handles the hauler-truck. It has since organized 17 seldas.

M’lang Multi-purpose Cooperative, Inc.

This cooperative has also transferred to a new location, i.e. to a site 10-meters distance from its previous site. It has likewise organized 25 satellite-cooperatives.
Farmers’ Service Cooperative, Inc. (New Cebu).
The New Cebu cooperative has acquired a new name, i.e. “New Cebu Farmers’ Multi-purpose Cooperative”. It now holds office in the Samaria house of the parish.
Matalam Sto. Niño Consumers Coop, Inc. (Matalam). Matalam

Cooperative has hired a technician who also acts as the cooperatives collector. It has since acquired two sets of hand held radios and a motorbike for monitoring and collection purposes. It has established a credit-line with Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP) for its palsy procurement activities and acquired a commodity loan from the Land Bank of the Philippines. It has facilitated the involvement of 80 farmer-members in cattle-fattening activities through the Land Bank of the Philippines.

The main source of credit for the five self-help cooperatives was the Land Bank of the Philippines through its commodity loan assistance program. The M’lang cooperative was able to obtain loans through tie-ups with the Land Bank and the National Irrigation Administration, over and above the commodity loans availed of directly from the Land Bank of the Philippines. Antipas, Magpet, Matalam and New Cebu likewise availed of commodity loans from the Land Bank. Other sources of credit were likewise identified, such as the Oblates of Mary Immaculate and the provincial government of North Cotabato, among others.

 Specific Problem Areas

Focusing on the problems encountered by the five self-help cooperatives relative to their involvement with the NCREDP, the following were identified:

Antipas. The manager noted that the credit committee is ineffective in making the necessary changes in the weakness of its’ members despite being reprimanded by the manager. They readily recognized their faults but always failed to change for the better. Except for one active member, the audit committee was perceived, to be inactive. Other problems cited included the manager’s inability to terminate the cooperative members hired as contractual-, staff, given the lesser work-demands of the cooperative, for fear ofi being misinterpreted (i.e. these individuals may outrightly claimi that the cooperative is also theirs). The low repayment rates of loans acquired from the GKK-KFI and Land Bank of the Philippines by the beneficiaries were likewise cited despite the restructuring schemes implemented, with some beneficiaries discontinuing their transactions and instead availing of the services of the traders. The manager also cited the insufficient working capital. A problem with attitudes was likewise mentioned, given the general perception of the members that the cooperative is their “savior”, i.e. there to provide for such emergency needs as sickness, immediate cash-need, and others.

   New Cebu. New Cebu likewise reported low loan repayment) rates, including those loans availed of from various sources.

Magpet. The cooperative manager, Mr. Quijote, mentioned the insufficient funds for cooperative operation and lack of post-harvest facilities. The lack of regular market for the members’ farm products was likewise cited causing members to sell to those offering higher farm-gate buyers. Seventy eight farmer-beneficiaries have stopped their loan-repayments, with some borrowers either selling or hocking their farm inputs to other farmers. Finally, the absence of any clear criteria, based on Cooperative by-laws, for eliminating non-patronizing members was cited.

M’lang. Constraints on the strict implementation of the policies by the marketing staff were reported by the manager. Other problems cited included the low loan-repayment rates, absence of regulated marketing linkages, and the direct-selling of farm produce to traders by those beneficiaries residing in far-flung areas of the municipality.

Matalam. The problems of the Matalam cooperative focused on the limited cooperative working capital and the absence of a hauler-truck to compete with the local traders plying the Kidapawan-Kabacan route.

 The Gagmay’ng Kristohanong Katilingban-Kidapawan Foundation, Inc.

The North Cotabato Rural Enterprise Development Program (NCREDP), which started mid-1989, was originally managed by the Social Action Center of the Diocese of Kidapawan. However, because of the program’s expanding operations, the Gagmay’ng Kristohanong Katilingban Kidapawan Foundation, Inc. (GKK-KFI) was subsequently established to allow the proper program-focused activities.

The GKK-KFI has seven board members and an operational staff composed of an executive director, an administrative officer, who likewise acts as the secretary and cashier, a bookkeeper, an organization related problems expert, and three community organizers.

While the GKK-KFI appears to have met the program’s expectations, it is likewise worth noting the following:

a. There is a need to establish a proper and effic4t Management Information System, evidenced by the contents of the reports and the forms of reports submitted to the Foundation by the five self-help cooperatives. Financial-statement reports vary from one cooperative the other and there is no clear monitoring system for he tit periodic review and assessment of the five cooperatives

b. An accurate, regular and appropriate record-keeping sys em must be installed. The available files do not include periodic reports on the actual status of the programs, particularly on the cooperative-level, whether on the quantitative or qualitative aspects of the programs.

c. Coordination between the Foundation and the five cooperatives and among the cooperatives themselves was installed through regular monthly meetings with the cooperative managers. These activities provided opportunities for discussing the status of the program on the cooperative level, including the provision of organizational development assistance and training usually identified through a consultative process between the two cooperative leaders and members. However, the cooperative managers noted the constant monitoring and supervision of the cooperatives in the first two phase of the production loans by Mr. Francisco Magnifico and r. Jun Obello.

The Effects of the Program on GKK-KFI, Five Self-help Cooperatives, Beneficiaries and     Community

The following part of this report presents the effects of the program on the program-implementor organization (GKK-KFI), five self-help cooperatives, beneficiaries and the community.

On GKK-KFI. From its initial activity as program implementor of the production loan program funded by the Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the GKK-KFI has grown into a multi-sectoral non-government organization. Recognizing the sectoral needs of the various residents of the Diocese of Kidapawan, it has developed various programs for women, Muslims and other tribal groups. It has proven its bankability partially through the track records instituted by the CRS-funded credit assistance program, and support from the Diocese of Kidapawan. Such bankability has likewise been supported by the various forms of financial assistance received for its programs, from the Department of Trade and Industry-Region XII, Cardinal Leger, OXFAM UK-Ireland, the Canadian Government, the Sweet Catholic Lenten Fund, the Department of Labor and Employment and the Italian Bishops’ Conference. This has enabled the Diocese to adapt to the emerging realities and opportunities for organizational development and effectively deliver services to the residents of the Diocese.

The program has developed the five self-help cooperatives from a “uni-cooperative” operation of consumer-goods trading to a “multi-cooperative”, i.e. expanding operations to marketing and credit and saving institutions. Likewise, the self-sustaining directed cooperatives have established various linkages with locally-based entities. Land Bank of the Philippines has been tapped for the acquisition of post-harvest facilities, specifically hauler-trucks and marketing capital, not to mention commodity and production loans. Training needs, on the other hand, have been provided by the CCDSMC. Marketing linkages (whether local, Davao City-based or Manila-based) have likewise been explored. Furthermore, the five self-help cooperatives have become socially and politically involved in the activities initiated by the Diocese.

The program, though minimal, has facilitated increases in the farm income of the beneficiaries through trainings, technical assistance and production loans. The minimal effect on income of the program has been attributed to the long dry spell experienced in the areas. The program likewise developed among the farmer-beneficiaries a sense of the value of savings, of the responsibilities of being a cooperative patron, and of the need to avoid exploitative relationships with middlemen or traders. This has been achieved through concerted efforts and the political will to promote collective responsibility for change. This explains the positive support of the beneficiaries to the program.

The capabilities of the farmer-members who have since organized into a cooperative have begun to build inroads into the once trader-dominated economy of the community. As a result of the CRS-funded production loan program, exploitative local traders were threatened by the growing solidarity of the cooperative members to support their respective cooperatives. Some traders (e.g. in M’lang) have discontinued their activities while others hive successfully established a link by lending their post-harvest facilities to the cooperatives (e.g. warehouses, driers and hauler-trucks ). Still others refuse to extend agricultural development-related services to the cooperative members: , Likewise, the cooperate es, including the GKK-KFI, have gained the trust and recognition of the local government which has invited them to sit in the provincial and municipal councils.

 Study Findings From the Membership

This section presents data collected from the respond members of the five self-help cooperatives. On the whole, tie members were further classified into beneficiaries and no beneficiaries of the production loans during the three-year perio The production loans served as one mechanism to increase farme income and subsequently develop self-sustaining cooperatives.

The respondents reported a total of 730.91 hectares present cultivated, with M’lang farmers indicating the highest number hectares cultivated (365.8 has.) and Matalam, the lowest (72.3 has). They cultivated an average of 2.22 hectares, with Magpet havin the highest (3.1 has.) and Matalam and M’lang, the lowest (2 has.)

The majority of the respondents did not expand their farms from 1989 to 1992. Slightly over a tenth (14%) of the respondents did expand farm size during the same period from less than one hectare (M’lang) to 2.875 hectares (Magpet).

Those who reported non-expansion of their farm-areas were further asked whether they had reduced their farm area from 1989 to 1992. Data findings indicated that more than three-fourths (86.6%) had not reduced their areas. Only 13.4 percent did, ranging from an average of less than one hectare (Antipas) to as high as 2.17 hectares (Magpet).

The crops planted in the cultivated areas were varied, with palay being the most popular (56.8%). Survey sites varied in the main crops planted. The majority of the respondents from M’lang (86.7%) were planting palay while those in Matalam had planted palay and corn (55.9%). The Magpet crops were more varied, i.e. palay, corn, and other crops. The farmers from Antipas and New Cebu, on the other hand, planted mostly rice and corn which were occasionally intercropped with other crops. On the average, 1.6 hectares were cultivated for palay, 1.5 hectares for corn and bananas, 1.4 hectares for rubber, 2.1 hectares for coconut, 1 hectare for peanuts and coffee, and less than one hectare for fruit trees.

Data regarding the farm practices of the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries included use of farm inputs (fertilizers and chemicals), sources of farm inputs, and reasons for buying from the sources, and problems encountered and actions taken to solve such problems. The use of farm inputs (fertilizers and chemicals), as a built-in requirement for availing of production loans, was one strategy used to increase farm-incomes.

The extent of fertilizer-use among the respondents was significantly high, i.e., 99.4 percent for the beneficiaries and 86.5 percent for the non-beneficiaries. A comparison across the survey sites revealed that, except for Magpet, all the beneficiaries used fertilizers. It is interesting to note, however, that the four non-beneficiaries from Antipas were fertilizer-users as well. The three most widely used fertilizers by the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries were urea, ammonium phosphate, and ammonium sulfate. (The same fertilizer-types were mentioned by the respondents in the baseline data.)

The cooperatives were cited as the major source of fertilizers for beneficiaries (90.6%) and non-beneficiaries (70.1%) alike. Such findings suggest a major shift in the respondents, relationship with local traders who have otherwise been perceived to be exploiting the cash-strapped local farmers. Baseline results revealed that fertilizers were then mainly procured from the traders, i.e. 96 percent of the respondents.

For the beneficiaries, the fertilizers were procured from the cooperative, primarily because it was part of the production loan program (66.8%). On the other hand, the findings that fertilizers were similarly procured from the cooperative by the non-beneficiaries (58.3%) were even more interesting. Those beneficiaries who availed of fertilizers from the traders did so mainly because these were not available from the cooperative.

Approximately two-thirds of the non-beneficiaries (65.3%) across all the survey-sites described their land as “irrigated” farms. However, all the non-beneficiaries from Antipas reported having rainfed farms. The beneficiaries, on the other hand, were almost equally divided into two main types, i.e. irrigated (503%) and rainfed (49.6%).

    Research findings revealed a total of 119 and 143 rice farmer-beneficiaries, and non-beneficiaries, respectively. (Howe er, none of the non-beneficiary respondents from Antipas were planting rice at the time of the survey.) The rice farmers planted a total of 405.7 hectares, 186.6 hectares (46%) of which were plant by the beneficiaries while the other 219.1 hectares (54%) were cultivated by non-beneficiaries. Comparing the two groups, the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries planted an average of 1.6 hectare and 1.5 hectares, respectively.

Among the beneficiaries, respondents fro New Cebu reported the highest average number of hectares planted with rice (1.8 hectares per respondent), with Magpet reporting the lo est (1.2 hectares per respondent). The non-beneficiaries from N w Cebu reported an average of 3 hectares planted with rice’ while those from Magpet and Matalam reported the lowest (1 hectare each).

The corn farmers, on the other hand, planted a total of 173.55 hectares, i.e. 135.85 hectares for the beneficiaries and 37.7 hectares for non-beneficiaries. Beneficiaries from Magpet indicated the highest average number of hectares planted with corn (3.4 hectares) and New Cebu, the lowest (0.9 hectares). The non-beneficiaries from Antipas reported the highest number of hectares planted with corn (2.1 hectares) while Magpet and M’lang indicated the lowest (0.9 hectares each).

To facilitate analysis of the volume of production and considering the long dry spell in 1992, the respondents were asked whether they were able to harvest any farm produce within the first eight months of 1992 rather than focusing solely on the last cropping.

The data revealed that only a few of the rice farmer-respondents (70 beneficiaries and 49 non-beneficiaries) were able to harvest farm produce for the first eight months of 1992. The corn-farmer respondents similarly reported fewer harvests for the first eight months of 1992.

The respondents reported having one or two harvests for both rice and corn for the first eight months of 1992. However, the majority of the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries reported having a single harvest within the eight-month period (97.1% and 93.9%, respectively). Similarly, corn was harvested only once by the majority of the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries during the period (98.4% and 95.2%, respectively).

Some exceptions, however, were reported. Two beneficiaries from M’lang, one non-beneficiary from Magpet, and two non-beneficiaries from M’lang reported harvesting palay twice for the first eight months of 1992. On the other hand, one beneficiary from Matalam and one non-beneficiary from Antipas reported two corn-harvests during the same period.

The volume of production per hectare for rice and corn appeared to be low for both beneficiaries (41.3 sacks of rice per hectare and 32.2 sacks of non-shelled corn per hectare) and non-beneficiaries (66.2 sacks of rice per hectare and 40.8 sacks of non-shelled corn per hectare) compared to the average figures established in the 1989 baseline, i.e. 75.67 sacks of rice per hectare and 65.1 sacks of non-shelled corn per hectare. As indicated earlier, such findings may be attributed to the long drought period experienced by the respondents in 1992.

Upon closer investigation of the data, the average rice and corn harvest per hectare appeared to be higher among the non-beneficiaries compared to the beneficiaries. Rice harvest per hectare was comparatively higher among the M’lang beneficiaries (62.8 sacks per hectare) and non-beneficiaries (72.3%) than those in the other survey sites. Such differences may be attributed to differences in water source, i.e. M’lang being a widely irrigated area vis-a-vis the other survey sites.

Corn harvest per hectare, on the other hand, was relatively high among New Cebu respondents (58.8 sacks of non-shelled corn per hectare for the non-beneficiaries). This could perhaps be due to the greater number of corn-farmers (39 farm rs) in New Cebu with an average of 1.5 hectares for corn production compared to the other survey areas, including the relatively plain corn areas it has.

Farmer beneficiaries were generally a rice-eating group (50.4%) while the non-beneficiaries preferred corn (62.1 %). The data revealed high proportion of rice-consumption among the beneficiaries from Antipas (75.3%) and Matalam (85.5%) and the non-beneficiaries from Magpet (81.4%) and Matalam (. 3.3%). On the other hand, except for the beneficiaries from Magpet, the majority of the non-beneficiaries from all the survey sit s generally consumed more than half of their corn produce.

Post-harvest facilities play a very important role in he farming activities of the farmers. They facilitate the processing o the harvest and will develop the capabilities of farmers to store fa produce whenever necessary so as to avail of higher prices. The following section discuss the respondents’ knowledge and awareness of the post-harvest facilities, namely the various services offered by their respective cooperatives, the type of post-harvest -facilities known, and the mechanism for making respondents aware of the existence of such facilities. A related discussion will focus on the utilization of post-harvest facilities (including the reasons for non-use), the fees or charges made for the use of such facilities (including the reasons for their free use, if appropriate), the problems encountered in their use and the solutions undertaken to solve such problems.

The survey results revealed a high awareness among the respondents (79.9% for beneficiaries and 67.6% for non-beneficiaries) regarding the existence of post-harvest facilities in their respective cooperatives. All the beneficiaries from Antipas and New Cebu and non-beneficiaries from Antipas were aware of such facilities in their cooperatives.

On the whole, six types of post-harvest facilities were mentioned. Among the beneficiaries, the most frequently mentioned were the warehouses (87.4%), hauler-trucks (86.6%), and driers (85.8%). The non-beneficiaries, on the other hand, reported mainly warehouses and driers.

M’lang beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries indicated the greatest number of known post-harvest facilities offered by their cooperatives (six types), while the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries in Magpet reported the fewest types of post-harvest facilities known to be offered by their cooperatives.

Research findings indicated at least five strategies utilized in informing the respondents about the post-harvest facilities in their cooperatives., The beneficiaries were usually informed during training activities (40.9%) while the non-beneficiaries mainly learned about such facilities from other cooperative members (40%).

Among those respondents aware of the post-harvest facilities, a high proportion has actually used these facilities (89.8% of the beneficiaries and 66.9% of the non-beneficiaries). None of the respondents from Magpet reported having used any post-harvest facility, given their inaccessible farm-areas and direct-selling practices of fresh farm produce.

Among the respondents, the post-harvest facilities most widely used were the hauler-trucks (78.1% of the beneficiaries and 76.6% of the non-beneficiaries) and driers (47.4% of the beneficiaries and 33.8% of the non-beneficiaries).

On the other hand, the beneficiaries who failed to use any of the post-harvest facilities said mainly that they did not need them, i.e. either they were “not storing farm produce” (46.2%) or they “they had (their) own drier(s)” (23.1%). The beneficiaries gave similar reasons for not using such facilities. To a lesser extent, other reasons cited by the beneficiaries included “the limited access to or inappropriateness of such post-harvest facilities” among others. The non-beneficiaries cited mainly the distant location of their farms from such post-harvest facilities, and their practice of selling their fresh farm produce directly.

Those who claimed using the post-harvest facilities of their cooperatives were asked about the fees or charges made on their use. A significant majority of the beneficiaries (85.1 % claimed that there were corresponding fees paid, while a smaller proportion of the non-beneficiaries (58.4%) reported similar charges. All the beneficiaries from Antipas and New Cebu (including’ the non-beneficiaries of the latter) reported making such ,payments. Forty-nine respondents (17 beneficiaries and 32 non-beneficiaries) reported the free use of the facilities.

Those respondents who paid for the use of such facilities reported various arrangements. The charges for the hauler-trucks were computed on a “per-kilo” basis while those for the driers and warehouses were computed on a “per-sack’ basis. The respondents (both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries) were usually charged from P0.05 to P0.25 per kilo for hauler-trucks while those using the warehouses and driers were usually charged from P1 to P2 per sack. The beneficiaries who used, the warehouses were usually charged from P1 to P2 per sack while the non-beneficiaries were charged less than P1.

More than half (57.9%) of the beneficiaries and over three-fourths of the non-beneficiaries (76.7%) did not meet any problems in using the post-harvest facilities of their cooperatives. Those who did mentioned mainly the insufficient number of facilities to serve all the cooperative members. Specifically, all the non-beneficiaries from Antipas, Matalam and New Cebu (including the beneficiaries from Matalam) reported that no problems were encountered in using such facilities.

Of the 66 respondents (48 beneficiaries and 18 non-beneficiaries) asked about the solutions used in response to the problems met, 35 respondents (53%) were generally passive, i.e. they solved their problems by “just waiting until the desired post-harvest facilities were available.” Twenty others, appeared to have been more resourceful either renting other privately owned post-harvesting facilities or using their neighbors’ facilities.

   Marketing

This section contains various marketing-related data, namely, sales practices,- reasons for not selling all of their farm produce, the usual buyers of their farm produce, reasons for selling farm produce to the usual buyer, when farm produce is usually sold, preferred buyer of farm produce, reasons for preference of certain buyers, perceived advantages of selling farm produce to the cooperatives, marketing problems encountered, and solutions undertaken to solve such marketing problems.

A significant majority of the beneficiaries (76.1%) and non-beneficiaries (88.8%) did not sell all their farm produce. Similar patterns were observed across all survey sites for both types of respondents. It is interesting to note that none of the non-beneficiaries from Matalam sold any of their farm produce. For both types of respondents, the single most-mentioned reason cited for not selling all their produce was their family consumption.

To whom did these respondents sell their farm produce? Who were their direct buyers? Data findings revealed that more than three-fourths (78.9%) of the beneficiaries sold their farm produce to the cooperatives while close to half (47.4%) of the non-beneficiaries sold their produce to the traders. Except for the respondents from Magpet, beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries alike in all survey sites generally sold their farm produce to cooperatives. All Magpet respondents, in contrast to the others, reported selling their produce to the traders rather than to the cooperatives.

Among the beneficiaries, selling farm produce to the cooperatives was motivated mainly by their desire to patronize their cooperative (94.1%), since such sales were considered as “payments for the loans availed of” (94.1 %). The non-beneficiaries, on the other hand, were motivated in selling their farm produce to the cooperative because of the “high buying price” (90%). As cooperative members themselves, they likewise considered it as one way of patronizing the cooperative (70%). In the same vein, those beneficiaries selling their produce to the traders were motivated by the “immediate need for cash” (71.4%). Non-beneficiaries, meanwhile, cited the purchasing strategies employed by the traders, i.e. directly picking up their farm products (81.8%).

The beneficiaries generally observed two schedules in selling their farm products, i.e. either selling farm produce right after threshing (47.2%) or after drying (46.5%). The non-beneficiaries mainly sold their farm produce right after threshing activities (66.5%). The respondents were further asked about the buyers they preferred. The majority of both groups (81.1% of the beneficiaries and 70.6% of the non-beneficiaries) cited selling to the cooperatives as one strategy for patronizing them.

Those who preferred to sell their farm produce to the cooperatives were further asked about the perceived advantages in selling to such associations. Research findings revealed that the beneficiaries and the non-beneficiaries alike cited mainly increased savings as one perceived advantage. Other advantages mentioned included the chance of availing of low-cost credits, th high buying price of cooperatives, and access to the post-h6rve t facilities of the cooperatives.

Those who reported selling their farm pr duce to the cooperatives were likewise asked about ‘any problem encountered in doing so. At least 17 out of 34 beneficiaries and fur out of ten non-beneficiaries admitted having encountered problems in selling their produce to the cooperative. Both groups cite the limited funds available to pay for the produced livered to the cooperative. Still others mentioned the limited number of hauler-trucks, the poor roads and the low buying price.

The solutions mentioned suggest Other a certain degree of passivity or sense of powerlessness among the respondents, being content mainly with “waiting till the cooperative has the money to pay for the produce delivered”. While the respondents may have wanted to do something about such problems, the situation may simply have been perceived to be beyond their control.

         Trainings

Trainings have been considered as one major component of the NCREDP, i.e. as a way to ensure that member-beneficiaries are provided the necessary inputs and skills, both in farming techniques and in non-farming related activities. This section thus presents the level of attendance of the respondents at trainings sponsored by the cooperatives, trainings actually attended, the perceived usefulness of the trainings attended, and the reasons for considering such trainings useful (or otherwise).

There were more beneficiaries (81.1%) attending the cooperative sponsored trainings relative to the non-beneficiaries (54.1%). Interestingly, all the non-beneficiaries from Antipas and Matalam reported having attended such cooperative trainings.

The respondents attended at least 18 types of cooperative trainings. Both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries mentioned mainly the “pre-membership” seminar and trainings in farming techniques. Beneficiaries from Antipas were involved in the largest variety of trainings (13 types), while Magpet beneficiaries had the least varied (3 types). Among the non-beneficiaries, M’lang respondents reported the most varied trainings (9 types), while New Cebu indicated the least (2 types).

A significant number of beneficiaries (89.1%) and non-beneficiaries (93.5%) considered such trainings useful. On the other hand, some beneficiaries from Antipas (9%), Matalam (4.5%), M’lang (12.1%) and New Cebu (4.3%) and some non-beneficiaries from Antipas (50%) and M’lang (2.9%) claimed otherwise.

Those respondents who regarded the trainings useful were further asked how these trainings were found to be useful. The respondents cited mainly their improved understanding of cooperatives and the additional knowledge gained. Still others mentioned improvements in their savings-habits and in their personalities, and the “practical farming knowledge” gained, among others.

Those who did not consider such trainings useful, on the other hand, were likewise asked to explain their perceptions. Among the nine beneficiaries concerned, five claimed that the knowledge gained was never applied. The four non-beneficiaries who similarly did not find the trainings useful complained about the cumbersome preparation of organic fertilizers and the limited supply of materials necessary in preparing the latter.

 Field Assistance

To supplement the trainings provided by the cooperatives for their members, hands-on technical assistance was likewise envisioned to guide the members appropriately in’ their actual application of the knowledge and skills derived either from trainings attended or from other sources. This section presents the respondents’ level of awareness of the technical assistance provided by the cooperatives, and the types of technical assistance received. Related questions focused on whether the technical assistance received was found to be useful, and the reasons for considering such technical assistance as useful (or otherwise). Respondents were likewise asked about the field visits conducted  any of the cooperative staff and about the farming techniques taught during such visits. Finally, the results of using such farming techniques were likewise investigated, i.e. the manner in which fanning techniques had improved production (and the reasons or believing otherwise), the problems encountered in availing of the hands-on technical assistance, and the solutions undertaken to solve the problems met.

The respondents were generally aware 484. % for the beneficiaries and 70% for the non-beneficiaries) of hands-on technical assistance provided by the cooperatives to its members. All the non-beneficiaries from Antipas and Matala reported knowing about the technical assistance provided by their cooperatives.

Those aware of the technical assistance offered by the cooperatives (135 beneficiaries and 119 non-beneficiaries) were further asked about the technical assistance availed of (if any). More than two-thirds (70%) of the beneficiaries and close to half of the non-beneficiaries claimed to have received some forms of technical assistance.

While 10 types of technical services were received by the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries alike, the most mentioned was the proper application of fertilizers and chemicals (46.8% and 45.5%, respectively). The non-beneficiaries from M’lang received the most varied technical assistance (8 types) while both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries from Magpet reported only one type. The other forms of technical assistance received by the respondents were related to “organic farming”, “proper planting system”, and “corn technology”.

The technical assistance received was found to be useful by a significant majority of both beneficiaries (75.5%) and non-beneficiaries (74.5%). All beneficiaries from Magpet, including the non-beneficiaries from Matalam and New Cebu, had similar responses. Those who regarded the technical assistance useful cited mainly the knowledge gained (42.2% and 36.6% of beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries, respectively), and the practical application of these techniques (31% and 29.3% of beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries, respectively). On the other hand, those who did not find the technical assistance useful singularly cited the non-application of knowledge gained.

More than three-fourths (79.2%) of the beneficiaries reported having been visited in their farms by the cooperative staff to discuss farming techniques. On the whole, more than half (53.5%) of the non-beneficiaries claimed otherwise. At the same time, one notes with interest that all the non-beneficiaries from Matalam reported such visits.

At least eight types of farming techniques were taught, the most mentioned being the proper use of fertilizers and chemicals (57.9% of the beneficiaries and 58.2% of the non-beneficiaries). New Cebu beneficiaries reported the widest variety of farming techniques (8 types) followed by the non-beneficiaries from M’lang (7 types). The non-beneficiaries from Antipas mentioned only a single farming technique.

Those taught farming techniques by the cooperative staff were further asked whether their farming techniques had improved or not. A significant majority of the beneficiaries (79.4%) and non-beneficiaries (75.9%) responded positively, as evidenced by their claims of improved farm production, applied knowledge and skills, and pest control.

On the other hand, 45 respondents reported that there were no perceived improvements in their farming techniques. The reasons cited were the crop-failures experienced as a result of the drought period, even as others claimed not having applied their karning or not having learned anything new.

Twenty-seven respondents (23 beneficiaries and 4 non-beneficiaries) admitted having some problems in availing of the technical assistance offered by the cooperatives to their members. The most-cited problem (20 respondents) concerned the non-availability of a technician and consequently, the delayed response to their farming problems by the technicians (6 respondents).

Ten respondents (8 beneficiaries and 2 non-beneficiaries) failed to do anything about their problems while six others (4 beneficiaries and 2 non-beneficiaries) simply waited for the technician. Two beneficiaries, however, claimed having solved their own problems.

Loan Assistance

This section on loan assistance focuses on the receipt (Or non-receipt) of such assistance by the respondents, including their knowledge and awareness of the specific requirements of the program.

Receipt of Loan for the Last Twelve Months. Nearly all (93;7%) of the beneficiaries have availed of loans for the last 12 month. The other 6.3 percent did not renew their loan application during the last Phase (VI) of the production loan program. Likewise, it is interesting to note cases of non-beneficiaries (58.2%) availing of loans for the last 12 months, the last phase of the Production Loan Program. This is due to members of the cooperative.

Awareness of the Requirements of Cooperative Loans. The majority of the beneficiaries (88.7%) and non-beneficiaries (60.6%) were aware of the requirements of the cooperative loans. All the non-beneficiaries from Matalam likewise reported being aware of the cooperative loan requirements. Understandably, more non-beneficiaries from Magpet claimed not having any knowledge of the requirements on loans offered by their cooperative.

Requirement Known for the Cooperative Loans. Asked about the requirements in applying for the cooperative loans, the respondents mentioned at least 10 requirements for members to qualify for such loans, the most mentioned (101 respondents) being the “completed and approved loan papers”. To a lesser extent, 68 respondents mentioned that one should be “a member in good standing (MIGS)” while 53 cited “one’s membership in the cooperative”. Thirty-seven respondents mentioned that “one must have a capital share of at least P5,000”, while 23 others indicated one’s attendance in the pre-membership seminar.

 Participation in the Cooperative Activities

Participation refers to the active involvement of the cooperative members in the activities of the cooperatives. The extent of participation of the members in such activities is indicative of the extent that cooperativism has been promoted by the cooperatives. Thus, this section discusses the respondents, participation (or non-participation) in cooperative activities, their reasons for not participating in such activities, the cooperative activities participated in, and their self-ratings regarding participation in cooperative activities.

Survey findings showed a significantly high level of participation in cooperative activities – both for the beneficiaries (95%) and non-beneficiaries (76.5%). All the beneficiaries from Antipas, Magpet and New Cebu and the non-beneficiaries from Antipas and Matalam claimed having participated in such activities. failed to participate in cooperative activities. Asked regarding their non-participation, twenty non-beneficiaries cited their distant residences while 11 others simply described themselves as inactive members. Similarly, the beneficiaries noted their inactive membership in the cooperatives due to their distant residences.

The cooperative activities mainly participated in by 151 beneficiaries and 130 non-beneficiaries were the cooperative general assemblies, meetings, and cooperative-trainings. To a much lesser extent, respondents were involved with dagyaw (bayanihan or communal labor), field trips, and Board of Directors meetings . When asked to rate their participation in cooperative activities, more than half of the beneficiaries (63.6%) and non-beneficiaries (51.5%) rated their participation as “active”.

Other Assistance Received by the Respondents

Recognizing the role of other agencies relative to the development of the marginal members of society, one underlying assumption in the study was that the respondents would most likely avail of the services offered by these agencies. This portion of the report thus looks into the assistance received by the respondents from agencies other than the cooperatives.

Survey results showed that less than a fourth (23%) of the total respondents received assistance from other agencies. All the six non-beneficiaries from New Cebu claimed that they had not received any type of agency-based assistance.

Those who claimed to have received some form of, assistance from other agencies (45 beneficiaries and 31 non-beneficiarie0 were likewise asked on the specific assistance received. At least 14 types of assistance were reported, with beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries together mentioning mainly fertilizers (25 respondents) and production loans (14 respondents). M’lang respondents reported the most varied types of assistance received Worn 7 to 8 types). To a limited extent, other forms of assistance received from the other agencies were commodity loans, calamity funds, rice-assistance, and others.

Most of the assistance received by the respondents were provided by government agencies (e.g. Department of Agriculture, Department of Natural Resources and Environment, and National Food Authority), individuals (e.g. local officials, Governor Diaz and chemical dealers), and non-government organizations (e.g. women’s groups, farmers organizations, and GKK-KFI).

 Comments and Recommendations

To determine the strengths and weaknesses of the cooperatives, the respondents were asked to comment on the cooperatives, specifically in terms of management, technical assistance, loan assistance, post-harvest facilities, trainings, and cooperative technicians.

On the whole, more than half of the respondents (56% of the beneficiaries and 63.6% of the non-beneficiaries) failed to comment on the cooperative management. Those who did cited mainly its “good management” (47 beneficiaries and 33 non-beneficiaries). On the other hand, 21 respondents perceived that the staff had limited management skills, while 13 others noted “unclear management policies”.

A total of 147 respondents (44.7%) failed to give their insights on the technical assistance received from the cooperative. At least 35 beneficiaries, along with 56 non-beneficiaries, recommended that the current technical assistance program be continued. Twelve respondents cited the additional knowledge gained. Negative insights were likewise given. While forty-eight respondents believed that no technical assistance was provided, 46 others described such assistance as limited.

The loan assistance program was received positively by many of the respondents, who cited the financial assistance given for their farm inputs and the low interest-charges. At least 54 respondents recommended that the loan assistance be continued. However, nearly half (42%) of the respondents failed to comment on the cooperative loan assistance program.

Close to half (43%) of the respondents likewise failed to give any insights regarding post-harvest facilities. The comments given, however, focused on the limited number of facilities ( 23%) and the absence of post-harvest facilities in the barrios (17%). At least 39 respondents (12%) considered them useful.

More than half (55%) failed to comment on the cooperative-trainings given. At least 55 respondents (17%) considered such trainings useful, while others (21%) found them limited. Approximately a third (32%) of the respondents did not give any insights regarding the cooperative technicians. Those who did gave mainly positive responses, i.e. finding them “active” (20%) and “good” (19%) and regularly visiting the farms (14%). Negative responses were likewise given, e.g. considering their service A. (19%) and number (10%) limited.

Noting the comments discussed earlier, what recommendations were given by the respondents so as to improve their cooperatives? On the part of the management, the respondents recommended mainly that more management trainings be given, along with more technical services. Other recommendations were that loans be increased from P3,000 to P5,000 per hectare, and that shellers and driers be provided to improve post-harvest facilities. More trainings for members were similarly recommended, as well as for technicians, and an increase in the number of the latter.

 Savings

The savings-related variables consisted of engaging in non-cooperative-based savings and depositories, utilization of such savings, crop-sharing arrangements with the cooperative as payment for their capital build-up, and reasons for not observing such arrangements.

Survey results revealed that except for 36 respondent (22 beneficiaries and 14 non-beneficiaries), all the respondents (representing 89%) were engaged solely in cooperative-savings. Such findings reflect the extent of the “forced savings” behavior among the respondents, i.e. their compliance with cooperative regulations without which such savings might not even cooperative regulations without which such savings might not even be possible.

Twenty-one respondents said that they had deposited their savings in the bank, showing their level of exposure to the formal banking system, and their readiness to avail of the bank’s safe-keeping services. However, ten other respondents said they were engaged in informal savings, and simply maintained their savings in their homes. Finally, some beneficiaries from New Cebu reported that they were engaged in various forms of savings outside the cooperative, e.g. in banks, homes, credit-unions, and other cooperatives. Household savings were reportedly practiced by ten respondents because of the distance of banks or other savings-institutions from their residences. Another beneficiary in M’lang reported that he had “deposited” (invested) money in a local lending activity (locally known as the “5-6” system wherein a borrower pays P1 for every P5 borrowed).

The 36 respondents having non-cooperative savings reported varied uses for such funds. While 15 respondents (10 beneficiaries and 5 non-beneficiaries) simply maintained their savings as such, others considered these as either contingency funds (10 respondents) or funds for the education of their children (8 respondents). Two others reported having used their savings for farm production.

A related measure of the respondents’ saving capacity was manifested in the form of post-harvest crop-sharing arrangements with the cooperative as part of their capital build-up shares. Data revealed that nearly two-thirds (62.6%) of the respondents (specifically 77% of the beneficiaries and 47% of the non-beneficiaries) were involved in such arrangements while the rest (126 respondents representing 32% of the total) were not.

Asked why no crop-sharing arrangements were made by these 126 respondents, they cited mainly their low farm yields. To a lesser extent, other reasons given were the “failure in farm produce due to drought” (26%), or the fact that their “farm produce was just enough for the family” (20%).

   Income

Utilizing income-related variables, the respondents assessed their incomes by comparing such incomes with household expenses. Questions were also raised about their coping mechanisms in the face of inadequate income and any perceived changes in farm income between 1989 and 1992. They were asked what the specific changes in income were, what specific lifestyle changes occurred, how their 1989 income compared with that in 1992, and finally, what their perceptions were on whether their incomes had improved as a result of their membership tin the cooperative or not and the reasons for such perceptions.

Comparing their farm income with their family expenses during the given period, more than three-fourths (79%) of the respondents (consisting of 120 beneficiaries and 139 non-beneficiaries) revealed that their farm income was not enough to meet family expenses. Forty respondents (12%) considered their incomes adequate, while ten others (3%) regarded their incomes in excess of expenses. How did those respondents with inadequate farm income handle their family expenses? What mechanisms were undertaken so as to bridge the gap between income and expenses? To cope with such difficulties, the respondents generally borrowed from money lenders (26.7% of the beneficiaries and 36% of the non-beneficiaries). Others either sought assistance from relatives and friends (11%) or simply “sold farm produce” (10%). Nine respondents mentioned using their past savings.

Approximately three-fourths of the respondents (80.5% of the beneficiaries and 68.2% of the non-beneficiaries) perceived changes in farm incomes from 1989 to 1992. Asked about the specific income changes, however, nearly two-thirds (61%) o these respondents reported negative changes while the rest (36%) perceived positive income changes.

Those reporting positive changes in their incomes were further asked about any perceived changes in their lifestyles due to such income increases. The majority of the beneficiaries (73.2%) and Asked about specific perceived changes in their lifestyles as a result of the increase in farming income, most of those claiming a change (33.3% of the beneficiaries and 54.4% of the non-beneficiaries) reported using the additional income for the education of their children. Other changes mentioned included providing credit to individuals, bank-savings, cooperative-savings, purchase of appliances, and payment of outstanding loans/credits, among others.

To determine the effects of the NCREDP production loans and other loans of program-assistance on the incomes of the targeted recipients of the program, the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries were asked to compare their 1992 farming income with their 1989 farming income. A 10-point ladder scale was utilized where “10” indicated the “most affluent” stage and “1” “the worst”. Research findings revealed that most of the beneficiaries rated both 1989 and 1992 incomes on ladder step number “5”. On the other hand, most of the non-beneficiaries rated their 1989 income on ladder step number “5” and their 1992 income on step number “6”. Such results suggest that the non-beneficiaries perceived themselves to be earning relatively higher incomes in 1992 compared to 1989, while the beneficiaries did not perceive any income changes at all.

However, mean ratings showed a downtrend in 1992 farming income relative to 1989 for both beneficiaries (from 4.8 in 1989 to 4.6 in 1992) and non-beneficiaries (from 4.7 in 1989 to 4.2 in 1992). While the beneficiaries registered below the mid-point, 5, they were still relatively better off, given the relatively lower 0.2 decrease in their mean rating from 1989 to 1992. Non-beneficiaries, on the other hand, indicated a decrease of 0.5 in their 1992 farm income compared to the 1989 mean ratings. These decreases in farming income could perhaps have been due to the long dry spell experienced by both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries.

Across the survey sites, only Magpet non-beneficiaries (from 4.1 in 1989 to 5 in 1992) and beneficiaries from New Cebu (from 4.2 in 1989 and 4.8 in 1992) indicated increases in their farming income between 1989 and 1992. Increases in farming income among Magpet non-beneficiaries may be explained by their participation in the production of table-bananas (specifically the “Lacatan” species), coconut, rubber and coffee since 1991.

A significant majority of the respondents (60% of the beneficiaries and 44% of the non-beneficiaries) perceived some improvements in their income since their membership in the cooperatives. On the other hand, 95 non-beneficiaries claimed otherwise. Interestingly, three non-beneficiaries from Matalam similarly perceived improvements in their incomes. Asked about their perceived improvements in income, the respondents noted mainly their “increased farm income” (39%), their savings (20%) “debt-payments” (19%), and access to cheaper consumer goods (18%). To a lesser extent, others cited the lower-interest loans, cheaper farm-inputs and potentials for farm-expansions.

For the 158 respondents (63 beneficiaries and 95 non-beneficiaries) who did not perceive any improvements in their income, the singular most important reason cited was their crop-failures as a result of the drought (49%). Thirty-four respondents simply felt “no change” in their incomes. Eighteen others cited the high cost of ‘farm-inputs and the low buying-price for their produce while sixteen respondents explained that their “produce (was) just enough for the(ir) family”. To a lesser extent, other reasons cited were the poor technical assistance, non-cooperative credit, and the fact that “farm produce (was) just enough to pay (for one’s) debts.”

Summary of Findings and Recommendations

This was a terminal study on the North ,Co Enterprise Development Program (NCREDP) which indicators necessary in evaluating and monitoring results, and impact of the program. Related research focused on identifying and assessing the project’s accomplishments vis-a-vis objectives, including its strengths and weak of the questions asked were: How effective were the strategies and approaches used in the program? What was the program on capital build-up and the participation of beneficiaries respective cooperatives? What factors affected th performance? As with similar studies of this nature, the final section deals with the formulation of recommendations to improve the project scheme in the hope of providing some basis for future program planners to design strategies and approaches that will better ensure the project’s success.

The findings were as follows:

1. A total of 1,924 individual farmers were reported to have been provided P6,102,811.99 worth of loans from Phases I-V, earning an interest of P526,455.30 and generating a total capital build-up of P1,846,005.80.

2. The collection rate for the loans released to the farmers was 76.6 percent, with 81.9 percent of the loan-interest and  38.5 percent, of the capital build-up generated being  collected.

3. A close analysis of the names of individual farmers provided with loan assistance from Phases Ito VI revealed a total of 802 actual farmers extended financial assistance.

4. Except for M’lang, all the five self-help cooperatives exceeded the target of 110 farmer-members that should have been provided financial assistance. M’lang has just met the standards set of 110 farmer-members.

5. The majority (61.7%) of the 802 farmer-beneficiaries were invariably drop-outs of the financial assistance program. Only 21.9 percent or 219 beneficiaries were continuing production loan recipients.

6. Only the M’lang cooperative generated a capital build-up more than the targeted P690,000 by the end of the three-year program.

7. The capital build-up generated by the five self-help cooperatives increased more than three times (363.8%) from its baseline figure of P377,721.

8. Around 4 percent (32 members) of the 802 farmer-beneficiaries reported a capital build-up equal to or greater than the assumed capital build-up a beneficiary should have generated by the end of the three-year program.

9. There were more leaders (i.e. ranging from 1 to 59, indicating a figure more than the projected 10 leaders per cooperative) that were provided cooperative management-related training, usually related to financial management and skills development.

10. More than 550 farmer-members were recipients of cooperative-sponsored trainings.

11. Farmer-beneficiaries successfully minimized establishing credit and marketing relationships with local traders.

12. All the five self-help cooperatives were duly registered, thus acquiring legal personality.

13. Rather than establishing a separate federation, the five self-help cooperatives instead acquired membership in the Cotabato-Davao del Sur Federation of Cooperatives.

14. Cooperative membership almost doubled (147:8%) by the end of the three-year program from its baseline figure.

15. Members’ capital share increased by at least five times (443.2%) by the end of the three-year program, compared to its baseline figure.

16. Current assets of the five self-help cooperatives in reared by at least seven times (607.85%) from its baseline status.

17. Total current assets of the five self-help cooperatives increased by at least eight times (700.4%) from its baseline status.

18. Net income of the five self-help cooperatives decreased by at least 31.8 percent from its baseline status by the end of the three-year program. This is due to the negative net income of the Matalam cooperative.

19. The mean gross farm expenses per hectare per cropping were computed at P5,521.

20. The mean gross farm income per hectare per cropping was P9,377.97 or P2,344.50 per month.

21. The mean net farm income per hectare per cropping was P3,471.31 or P867.83 per month.

Beneficiaries vis-a-vis Non-beneficiaries

1. The respondents cultivated an average of 2.22 hectares of land.

2. The majority of the respondents (86%) reported non-expansion of farm-size from 1989 to 1992; those who did, expanded their farm size by an average of 1.23 hectares.

3. The majority of the respondents (86.6%) did not reduce their farm-size; those who did reduced their farm size by an average of 1.22 hectares.

4. A variety of crops have been reported planted by the respondents, with rice as the most popular (56.8%).

5. An average of 1.6 and 1.5 hectares per respondent were planted with rice and corn, respectively.

6. There was a high rate fertilizer usage among the beneficiaries (99.4%) and non-beneficiaries (86.5%), usually urea, ammonium sulfate, and ammonium phosphate.

7. Cooperatives were the major source of fertilizers for both beneficiaries (90.6%) and non-beneficiaries (70.1%) compared to the baseline data where traders served as the main source of fertilizers.

8. Beneficiaries mentioned that sourcing of fertilizers from the cooperatives was but part of the production loan program while the non-beneficiaries did so as regular patrons of the cooperative.

9. Chemical-usage was likewise high among the respondents (74.8% of the beneficiaries and 85.3% of the mon-beneficiaries), with cooperatives serving as the main sogrce. Beneficiaries explained this situation as being part of the production loan program while the non-beneficiaries said that they did so as part of their membership-role.

10. Hostathion, Thiodan, Trebon and Nuvacron were the four most frequently mentioned chemicals used.

11. Unavailability of fertilizers and chemicals from the cooperative forced some respondents to avail of such from the traders.

12. “Delayed release” and “limited/no stocks” were the two most frequently mentioned farm-input procurement problems of the beneficiaries (43.8% and 40.3%) and the non-beneficiaries (22.5% and 29%), with those concerned simply requesting cash from the cooperative to buy the farm inputs outside the cooperative (60.4% of the beneficiaries and 69.9% of the non-beneficiaries).

13. The beneficiaries’ type of farm was almost equally div between “irrigated” (50.3%) and “rainfed”(49.7%) the majority of the non-beneficiaries reported ha “irrigated” farms.

14. Rice-farmer beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries plant average of 1.6 and 1.5 hectares, respectively.

15. Corn-farmer beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries planted an average of 1.5 and 1.1 hectares, respectively.

16. A limited number of rice-farmer respondents (70 beneficiaries and 49 non-beneficiaries) reported any harvest for the first eight months of 1992., so with the corn-farmer respondents (62 beneficiaries and 21 non-beneficiaries).

17. The volume of rice and corn production for both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries appeared to be low compared to the baseline figures due to the long dry spell.

18. Beneficiaries were generally rice-consumers (50.4%) while non-beneficiaries mainly preferred corn (62.1%).

19. There was a high level of awareness among the respondents regarding the existence of the post-harvest facilities in their cooperatives, with the beneficiaries usually being informed through cooperative training activities and the non-beneficiaries learning about these through their co-members.

20. Warehouses (87.4%), hauler-trucks (86.6%), and driers (85.8%) were the three most frequently mentioned post-harvest facilities which the beneficiaries were aware of, while the non-beneficiaries were mostly aware of the warehouses and driers.

21. Use of the post-harvest facilities (usually the hauler-trucks and driers) was high for both the beneficiaries (89.8%) and non-beneficiaries (66.9%).

22. Those who did not use the post-harvest facilities explained that these were not needed, either because they were not storing farm produce (direct-selling) or they had their own driers.

23. A high proportion of the beneficiaries (85.1%) and non-beneficiaries (58.4%) reported that corresponding charges were made for the use of the post-harvest facilities.

24. Some respondents reported the free use of the post-harvest facilities, particularly in M’lang and Matalam.

25. The amount of charges for the use of the post-harvest facilities varied with the type of facility, i.e. the use of hauler-trucks was paid for on a per-kilo-basis (usually from P0.05 to P0.25 per kilo for both beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries) while use of warehouses and driers was paid for on a per-sack-basis.

26. The limited number of post-harvest facilities was cited by the respondents as a major problem regarding the use of the facilities with no definite solutions undertaken.

27. The majority of the beneficiaries (75.5%) and non-beneficiaries (88.8%) did not sell their entire farm produce, as some portions were used for household consumption.

28. The majority of the beneficiaries (78.9%) sold their produce to the cooperatives while close to half of the non-beneficiaries (47.3%) sold to traders.

29. The sale of farm produce to traders was justified by ; the beneficiaries in terms of their “immediate need for cash’ while the non-beneficiaries cited the advantage of the traders’ picking up their farm produce directly from their farms.

30. Beneficiaries sold their farm produce either right after threshing or drying while the non-beneficiaries did so right after threshing. 31. Both beneficiaries (81.1%) and non-beneficiaries (70.5%) preferred to sell their produce to the cooperatives by way of patronizing the cooperative.

32. The main advantage cited by the respondents in selling their produce to the cooperatives was the increase in savings.

33. The basic problem encountered by the respondent in marketing their produce to the cooperative was the limited funds available to pay for their farm produce; these Were met with passive indifference.

34. Attendance in cooperative-sponsored trainings was high among the beneficiaries (81.1%) compared to the non-beneficiaries (54.1%); usually they attended the ” re-membership”trainings and farming-techniques training

35. A significant majority of the beneficiaries (89.1%) and non-beneficiaries (93.4%) cited the usefulness of the trainings, usually noting the improved understanding of cooperatives and the additional knowledge gained as the main benefits .

36. The failure to apply knowledge gained from the trainings was cited as the primary reason for perceiving trainings as not useful.

37. There was .a high level of awareness among the beneficiaries (84.9%) and non-beneficiaries (70%) regarding the hands-on technical assistance provided by the cooperatives, with more than two-thirds (70%) of the beneficiaries and close to half (46%) of the non-beneficiaries reporting actual use of such services.

38. The usefulness of the field technical assistance provided was noted by the majority of the beneficiaries (75.5%) and non-beneficiaries (74.5%), usually in terms of knowledge accumulation and practical application of these techniques.

39. Non-usefulness of the field technical assistance, on the other hand, was related to the non-application of knowledge gained.

40. A high proportion of the beneficiaries (79.2%) and non-beneficiaries (53.5%) reported that their farms were visited by the cooperative staff in order to discuss the proper use of fertilizers and chemicals.

41. The majority of those who were visited (79.4% of the beneficiaries and 75.9% of the non-beneficiaries) reported improvements in their farm techniques, as evidenced by their improved farm production, applied knowledge and skills, and pest control.

42. Non-availability of the technician and the delayed response of the technician regarding their farm-related problems were the two most frequently mentioned problems relative to availing of the hands-on technical assistance.

43. Nearly all (93.7670) of the beneficiaries availed of the last Phase (VI) of the CRS production loans. 44. Non-beneficiaries of the CRS production loans, however, availed of similar assistance provided by the Land Bank for all cooperative members.

45. Cooperative loan-requirements were widely known to the beneficiaries (88.7%) and non-beneficiaries (60.6%).

46. Participation in cooperative activities was high among the beneficiaries (95%) and non-beneficiaries (76.5%), usually in general assemblies, meetings, and cooperative-sponsored trainings.

47. Participation of some members in cooperative activities was constrained by their being inactive members and living in distant areas.

48. The respondents’ self-rating on participation in cooperative activities was generally “active”.

49. Only a few respondents were recipients of assistance from other agencies, usually fertilizers and production loans which were provided mainly by government agencies such as the Department of Agriculture (DA), Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), and National Food Authority (NFA).

50. White some respondents recognized the “good cooperative management” of their respective cooperatives, some noted the limited skills of the staff and the ,unclear management policies.

51. One recommendation was to contini4e providing assistance.
technical assistance.

52. The “production-loan program” was significantly st4Torted by the respondents.

53. The limited number or total absence of the post -harvest facilities were commonly/ frequently reported by the respondents.

54. Some respondents considered the trainings as limited.

55. Cooperative technicians were observed to be “active”, “good”, and regular in their visits to the farmers’ farms.

56. Still other recommendations focused on the need for management to undergo trainings on cooperative management, for more technical services, for an increase of loan ceilings from P3,000 to P5,000 per hectare, for an increase in the number of driers and shellers, for trainings to be conducted, for the number of cooperative technicians to be increased, and for more trainings for these technicians.

57. Only a few of the respondents (36 individuals) reported that they were engaging in non-cooperative-based savings, usually at the bank 21 respondents for contingency purposes and for the education of their children.

58. Crop-sharing arrangements as part of the capital build-up scheme were made by more than three-fourths (77%) of the beneficiaries and close to half (47%) of the non-beneficiaries.

59. The low farm-yield prevented the respondents from actually practicing crop-sharing arrangements as envisioned.

60. Inadequate income relative to expenses was experienced by 120 beneficiaries and 139 non-beneficiaries. This was mainly solved by availing of informal credit, i.e. by borrowing from local money lenders.

61. Almost three-fourths (74.2%) of the respondents (128 beneficiaries and 116 non-beneficiaries) perceived changes in their farm income from 1989 to 1992. These were generally negative changes.

62. The majority of the beneficiaries (73.2%) and non-beneficiaries (67.4%) reported changes in their lifestyle caused by increase in farm income, mainly using such increases as tuition-payments for their children.

63. Based on an income-ladder scale, the data showed that farm income decreased between 1989 and 1992 for both beneficiaries (i.e. from a mean of 4.8 in 1989 to 4.6 in 1992) and non-beneficiaries (i.e. mean of 4.7 in 1989 to 4.2 in 1992).

64. Sixty percent of the beneficiaries and 44 percent of the non-beneficiaries perceived improvements in their incomes as a result of cooperative membership, claiming increases in farm income, savings, debt-reductions, and  access to cheaper consumer goods.

65. Crop-failures due to the drought-period were cited as the major reason for not perceiving any income improvements since availing of cooperative membership.

Recommendations

1. On the basis of the findings recorded above, it can be that at least six out of nine program objectives have been attained, to wit:

a). extending financial and technical assistance to at least five self-help cooperatives;

b). extending financial assistance to more than farmer-members;

c). training more than 550 farmer-members on farming techniques and related trainings;

d). training more than 10 leaders per cooperative cooperative management

e). facilitating avoidance of the exploitative claws of the local traders; and

f). acquisition of legal personality for the five self-help cooperatives.

Such findings suggest a significant level of effectivity and efficiency in the primary strategies and approaches employed in program implementation. At the same time, the data show that the strategies and approaches utilized. produced only a minimal optimum effect on the farm-income per hectare that was expected in order to generate the capital build-up of the beneficiaries. This was due mainly, however, to the drought experienced by the farmers between 1989 and 1992.

These findings would seem to indicate the advisability of maintaining the current strategies and approaches and also the need for some modification for better results.

2. As a built-in mechanism for influencing farmer-beneficiaries, the capital build-up formation required under the production loan program appeared to be successful in making the beneficiaries gradually recognize the value of savings. While they may have failed to appreciate its value in the short-run, a close analysis of the long-range capital build-up highlights its role and importance in laying the basis for the ability of the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries alike to avail of the services provided by the cooperative. To appropriately increase the capital build-up, not only for the individual beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries but for the five self-help cooperatives as well, the project management, together with the five cooperatives, are encouraged to be creative and resourceful in facilitating other economic activities through which members can earn additional income. The cattle fattening program, facilitated by the Matalam cooperative through its link with the Land Bank of the Philippines, is one example.

3. Participation of the beneficiaries in the program’s decision-making and planning process appears to be limited, mainly to reviewing and criticizing the prepared plans submitted by the officers and key staff-members. This suggests a “top-down” rather than a participative management style. However, at the cooperative level, the survey results show that the members are actively participating in other activities. This situation will most likely occur in any organization with many members considering the time, effort, and money the organization will spend. This level of participation indicates the level of cohesion among members. The decision to maintain or modify this situation should be reviewed, based on the prioritized management style of the cooperatives. Likewise consideration c/ the reasons for non-participation of members in cooperative activities must also be included in the review.

4. The number of staff-members implementing the program will likewise affect the performance of the program. At the project management and even in the cooperative level, istaff-members played multiple roles. Such multiple troles resulted in job-related dysfunctions such as half-faked service delivery, unclear decision-making processes and delayed and sometimes disorganized reports. This do4notes the type of conceptualization and planning that the program has undergone, suggesting .the need for proper project planning, development and review, i.e. furnishing appropriate guidelines for staffing-patterns, implementation, monitoring and evaluation.

5. The type of management information system installed in the program will most likely affect the program’s performance. Record keeping of the project management and the cooperatives indicated unclear entries including various forms used in financial statement reports. A carefully designed management information system will provide the necessary directions and development o1 tools for periodic monitoring of data relative to the successful program performance. A training program may be organized on the installation of a management information system, including financial management, where collective accountabilities are strongly promoted. A well-designed program is equated with sound financial management reflected in proper financial status reporting.

6. Survey findings show a downtrend in collection rates of loan releases, loan-interests, and capital build-up generated from Phase 1 to Phase 5. Collection rates appeared to be high in Phase 1 and gradually decreasing up to Phase 5, a situation due perhaps to the long dry spell affecting the farm-yield level of the farmers.

This affects not only the regularity of loan repayments of the beneficiaries, but likewise the type of management information system, the level of policy implementation, and the level of accountabilities of the project management and the cooperatives in program implementation. Thus, the installation of an appropriate management information system is imperative. This will not only strengthen the monitoring capabilities of the project management and the cooperatives but likewise periodically inform the project management and the cooperatives about the program status for appropriate decisions and corollary actions.

7. The records show a total of 2,086 farmer-members provided financial assistance from Phase 1 to Phase 5. However, a close analysis of the names recorded reveal only 802 farmer-beneficiaries from the five self-help cooperatives. This reflects the type of recording system the project management has installed. Thus, it is suggested that the project management should provide the form to the cooperatives to clearly monitor the extent of spread of the program services among the farmer-members.

Similar problems are indicated in the records of the number of cooperative leaders provided cooperative management- related trainings. Only numbers are reported minus the names. This does not clearly provide information on the extent of leadership-development activities of these cooperatives. A specific interest is to monitor whether the 10 cooperative leaders have been continually provided trainings, as envisioned, up to the end of the three-year program.

8. Research findings reveal that the credit assistance has been effective in promoting the use of inorganic fertilizers and chemicals to the beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries as well a program strategy provided for farmer-members so as to avoid dealing with exploitative local traders. However, such positive effects notwithstanding, the other “hidden” of the beneficiaries and their household members, on soil fertility, and on the environment should have been monitored as well. Certain research findings have revealed that Endosulfan, classified by the World Health Organization (WHO) as moderately hazardous is marketed in the Philippines as Thiodan, Contra 35 EC, Endox 15 EC, Atlas Endosulfan 35 EC, and Endosulfan 35 EC (Philippine Daily Inquirer: 1993, 10). Perhaps this is an opportune time to suggest that agricultural development-related project proposals should be analyzed on the basis of being environment-friendly, over and above the other criteria considered. Likewise, use of inorganic farm inputs should be coupled with a massive educational campaign regarding their application and safe use or, perhaps, organic farming should be implemented instead. The latter will promote not only sustainable but also environment-friendly rural agricultural development

9. While the cooperative-sponsored trainings and technical assistance provided were reported as “useful”, these were, however, usually on the level of knowledge acquisition only with just a minimal number applying the skills learned due to cumbersome activities involved in their application. A more effective indicator of usefulness would be the number of respondents actually applying the skills learned. Thus, it is suggested that trainings conducted should include actual demonstration. A constant monitoring in this regard should be installed through the use of re-entry plans proposed by training-participants and submitted after the training indicating the manner the skills learned will be integrated into their farming activities.

10. To more effectively attain the objectives of the pro ram, it is recommended that the comments and recommendations of the respondents regarding the cooperative management should be reviewed and made part of the program directions.

11. Given the capabilities of the cooperatives, a group among the cooperative members may be formed to review the existing agricultural policies that hinder maximum growth of the farmers so that appropriate cooperative advocacy activities, relative to farmer’s welfare might be undertaken.

12. One suggestion of the respondents about the loan assistance was to increase the amount of loan from P3,000 to P5,000 per hectare. To effectively meet the financial assistance needed by the farmers on a hectare-basis, an inflationary-based computation should be made on an annual basis.

13. As a whole, the program was successful in increasing the income of the farmer-beneficiaries, albeit minimally, mainly through the loan assistance, training and technical assistance given so as to gradually develop self-sustaining cooperatives. The indicators outlined earlier appear to have been successfully met, suggesting the feasible replication of the program. However, a careful analysis of the NCREDP experience is a must in order to clearly spell out the other indicators that merit replication.

14. Other indicators worth including, over and above those explicitly identified by the program, for monitoring and evaluation might well include the number of drop-outs and their reasons; the number of continuing beneficiaries; the presence and absence of organizational structure; efficient record keeping; and the quality of services/assistance rendered in terms of timeliness, relevance, adequacy, equity, progressiveness, continuity and demeanor.

 

A Study of Goiter Incidence among Households in South Cotabato

The tropical regions of the Third World Countries, including the Philippines, claim most of the one billion people estimated to be exposed to the risk of goiter because of iodine deficiency. Excluding China, Asia has 400 million exposed to the risk of goiter, 80 million of which are actually suffering from the disease. “More than half of the population in severely goitotrous areas may have subclinical hypothyroidism, which itself can have adverse effects on the general health and productivity of the people” (Gilbert, World Health Forum, 1984).

In the hierarchy of acute and chronic diseases plaguing developing  countries, endemic goiter ranks low given its benign appearance. Also the full extent of its many complications, all of them deleterious to the well-being of the population, is by no means appreciated (Gilbert, World Health Forum, 1984).

The important role of iodine deficiency in the development of endemic goiter is well established, as are the dramatic effects of iodine supplementation on goiter prevalence rates and on endemic cretinism, which can be eliminated or at least reduced to a negligible level.

Cognizant of its role in promoting health among its people, the Philippine Government, through the Department of Health (DOH), launched its Fortification for Iodine Deficiency Elimination (FIDEL) Program to uphold the goal of Universal Salt Iodization as its commitment during the 1990 World Summit for Children. It is along this line that this survey was envisioned by the Provincial Health Office of South Cotabato to effectively prioritize areas where the initial launching of the program will be done.

Objectives of the Study

Generally, this study intends to establish the prevalence of goiter in South Cotabato. Specifically, it aims:

1. to present a profile of the respondents;

2. to determine the knowledge of the respondents on iodized salt;

3. to establish the prevalence of goiter among respondents; and

4. to describe the respondents health-seeking behavior to prevent occurrences of goiter.

Significance of the Study

This will serve as the basis for the Provincial Health Office of South Cotabato to identify endemic area where the initial launching of the Iodized Salt Program should be implemented.

Methodology

This is a descriptive study focusing on the prevalence of goiter in South Cotabato, including information on the respondents’ profile, knowledge on iodized salt, and health-seeking behavior relative to goiter treatment.

The study was conducted in 11 municipalities (e.g. Polomolok, Tupi, Malapatan, Tampakan, Tantangan, Sto. Nino, Banga, T’boli, Lake Sebu and Surallah) of South Cotabato.

The barangays under each municipality were classified into urban and rural, from which the survey sites were chosen. All the urban barangays were purposively chosen as survey sites while two rural barangays were chosen from each municipality based on the highest number of household population. A total of 800 respondent-households (i.e. 400 rural and 400 urban) were systematically chosen from each barangay.

The household heads served as the respondents of the study. A structured interview schedule, translated in the vernacular, was used in the data collection. Twenty-two barangay health workers (BHWs) were trained for the data  collection. They were supervised by a trained Field Supervisor for a period of 15 days.

Data processing was done manually while data analysis used simple descriptive statistics such as mean, frequency and percentage distribution.

The Research Findings

Incidence of Goiter Among The Respondents

Prevalence of goiter in this study is determined in two ways:

1. This was addressed by asking the trained BHWs  to secure the number of households in the survey sites with cases of goiter. These figures were then divided by the total number of households.

2. Based on the results, a total of 921 (3.3%) out of 27,544 households from the survey sites were reported by the field interviewers as having cases of goiter. The rural survey sites indicated a total of 626 households (68% of 921) with cases of goiter as compared to the 295 (32% of 921) urban households reported by the field interviewers. As a whole, the urban survey sites revealed a prevalence rate of 1.5 while, for the rural survey sites, the prevalence rate was computed at 7.7.

In the urban survey sites, on the one hand, the prevalence rate of goiter ranged from as low as 0.2 (Poblacion, Tampakan) to as high as 6.7 (Poblacion, T’boli). On the other hand, the rural survey sites’ prevalence of goiter ranged from 0.2 (Barangay Kablo, Tupi) to 39 (Barangay Tasiman, Lake Sebu). These figures generally revealed a relatively higher prevalence of goiter in the rural areas than in the urban areas.

The survey sites with prevalence rates equal to or greater than 10 include the following: Tasiman, Lake Sebu (39), Kematu, T’boli (37.2), Moloy, Surallah (21.90, Lampitak, Tampakan (19.2) and Lamfugon, Lake Sebu (16.9).

When the prevalence rate of goiter was computed among the respondents, the findings showed that the urban survey sites revealed a total of 76 households with cases of goiter compared to the 65 households in the rural survey sites.

Among the urban survey sites, except for Sto.Nino (3.2) and Banga: Reyes (6.3), the rest of the poblacion had prevalence rates equal to or higher than 10. Poblacion, Tangtangan revealed a prevalence rate of 40, followed by Tupi (37.1), and Surallah: Libertad (37). It is interesting to note that the field interviewers from T’boli were not able to interview any households with cases of goiter.

Among the urban survey sites, four barangays had less than 10 prevalence rate: Moloy, Surallah (9.1), Kablon, Tupi (3.2), Saravia, Koronadal (9.1), and San Jose, Banga (7.7). Canahay, Surallah pegged the highest prevalence rate (64.7) among the respondents, followed by Lamfugon, Lake Sebu (44.4). The other barangays with prevalence rates equal or higher than 10 were: Desawo, T’boli (23.1), Kematu, T’boli (23.1), Lapuz, Norala (11.1), New Cuyapo, Tantangan (25), Acmonan, Tupi (31), Assumption, Koronadal (26.7), Liwanay, Banga (28.2), Danlay, Tampakan (16.7), and Lampitak, Tampakan (26.7). It is interesting to note that none of the households interviewed in barangays Tasiman, Lake Sebu; San Vicente, Sto Niño; San Jose, Norala; and New Iloilo, Tantangan reported any cases of goiter.

A total of 161 cases of goiter were recorded from the 800 households covered by the survey. The urban areas recorded a total of 89 cases from 76 households (or an average of 1.2 cases per household). The rural areas, on the other hand, indicated a total of 72 cases from a total of 65 households (or an average of 1.1 cases per household).

Among the urban survey sites, Surallah and Liwana, Banga (11 cases each) revealed a relatively higher number of cases of goiter, with Kablon, Tupi the lowest (1 case only).

Health-Seeking Behavior Relative To Goiter Treatment

This section discusses the respondents’ health-seeking behavior relative to goiter treatment. Specifically, it deals with the following topics: number of respondents reporting any of their household members with signs and symptoms of goiter, usual action taken if any household members had signs and symptoms of goiter, medicine used for self-medications, consultation with public health center, and attitude towards public health services.

Only a few of the respondents (17.6% or 141 respondents) have household members with signs and symptoms of goiter. Around 19 percent (18.8%) were from the urban areas while 16.3 percent were from the rural areas. The figures, though appearing small, should cause concern on the part of the health officials. Health-wise, though it is not contagious, necessary attention should be given them. If left unattended, the number of individuals with goiter will most likely increase. This will greatly affect the good health of the individuals concerned.

A total of 161 individuals were reported with signs and symptoms of goiter. Of these 161 individuals, more than half (55.3% or 89 persons) were urban dwellers while 44.7 percent (or 72 persons) were rural dwellers.

Self-medication usually included iodized salt (23.8%) and eating seafoods/ seaweeds (20.6%). Others used wet hot towel, herbal medicine, ointment, iodine, Chinese medicine, Inderal, ginger and coconut oil. It is interesting  to note that 34.9 percent failed to indicate the medicine used when they self-medicate.

The urban-based respondents appeared to use more medicine during self-medication (9 types) than rural-based respondents (8 types).

More than half of the household members with signs ans symptoms of goiter (60.7%) consulted the public health center, while the rest (39.9%) claimed otherwise.

Those who did not consult the public health center, usually visited private doctors (58.2%) or barangay health workers (25.5%). Others consulted the traditional healers, their parents, private nurses/ midwives and their children.

The proximity of residence to the health center has been found by several studies to be a determinant of use of the services of the public health center. The farther the residence of the clients from the health center is, the lower the utilization of the service of the health center compared to those residing nearer the health center. In this study, the respondents’ residences were located at an average of 1273 meters away from the health center. The respondents from the rural areas were  1307 meters away from the health center while those residing in the urban areas indicated an average of 1239 meters away.

When asked about what they have been doing to prevent goiter in their households, the three most mentioned activities included use of iodized salt (43.4%), eating seafoods (28.1%), and eating seashells once a week (12.5%). Similar activities were cited by the urban and rural-based respondents.

Attitude refers to one’s disposition towards an object or a thing. In this study, attitude refers to the respondents’ views about the services of the public health center. This will serve as a gauge to establish the support that the clients tend to have about the services of the public health services.

Generally, the respondents had a favorable attitude towards the health services provided by the public health centers.

Two out of eight attitudinal statements were given by the respondents an unfavorable rating. These statements include “Patients usually go to the public health center because of free medicines” and “The  services from the public health center and private clinic are equally good.” These were given a rating of 3.14 and 2.87, respectively. These show that the respondents were discounting the concept presented in the statements,i.e the respondents disagreed that the clients go to the health center because of free medicines and that the services of the health center are the same quality as those with the private clinics. the urban respondents rated the statement: “The public health center is doing good in treating patients with goiter” as “very favorable” (1.53); the rest of the statements  were rated as  “favorable.” None of the statements were rated by the rural-based respondents as  ” very favorable.” Except for those rated as “unfavorable”, all the statements were rated as “favorable” by the rural based respondents.

Summary of Findings

The respondents were usually female (87.5%), average age of 37 years old, reached high school level of education (45.5%), were employed (94.4%) as farmers (40%), mostly without other sources of income (62.6%), earning an average of P2643 monthly- which is less than half of the poverty threshold of 5581.64 – and had an average of 5.6 household members.

A significant number of the respondents (88.9%) reported knowledge about iodized salt which was usually provided by the barangay health workers (67.5%), radio (62.6%) and midwives (45%). They learned that iodized salt prevents goiter (41.4%) and improves the memory of children (25.6%).

The signs and symptoms of goiter usually recognized by the recognized by the respondents were “enlargement of the neck” (54%) and “tightening of the neck” (16.3%).

Based on the total household population of the survey site, a prevalence rate of 3.3 percent was recorded. A total of 921 out of 27, 544 households from the survey sites were reported as having cases of goiter. The following barangays can be seen as endemic based on the established prevalence rates of 10 percent and over: Tasiman of Lake Sebu (39%), Kematu of T’boli (37.2%), Moloy of Surallah (21%), Lampitak of Tampakan (19.2%), and Lamfugon of Lake Sebu (16.9%).

Based on the number of respondents covered by the study, a prevalence rate of 17.6 was recorded by the 800 respondents. A total of 161 household members from 141 respondents were reported as having signs and symptoms of goiter. Urban areas reported a relatively high number of goiter cases (89 persons from 76 respondents) compared to their rural counterparts  (72 persons from 65 respondents).

The usual action taken by the household members with signs and symptoms of goiter was to self- medicate (31.1%) and consult the health center (26.1%). Self-medication usually included iodized salt (23.8%) and eating seafoods/ seaweeds (20.6%).  Hilots or traditional healers were likewise consulted. Those who do not consult the health center for signs and symptoms of goiter usually visited the private physicians (58.2%) and the barangay health workers (25.5%). The health centers were usually 1273 meters away from their residences.

The respondents used iodized salt (43.4%) and ate seafoods (28.1%) to prevent occurrence of goiter.

The public health services were favorably viewed by the respondents (2.21).

Recommendations

Based on the findings of the study, the following recommendations are proposed:

1. The respondents indicated a favorable attitude towards public health services. This should be sustained and developed further by soliciting all out support from the local officials, given the devolution program, to encourage health workers to go to the barangays by providing the necessary logistical support and the medicines needed by the citizens.

2. As a whole, the prevalence rate of goiter is 17.6 percent among the respondents: 19 percent for urban respondents and 16.3 percent for rural respondents. Health-wise, these figures seem to be alarming and merit the attention of the health authorities; unattended, the adverse effects of goiter to women and children will worsen. As much, the provincial, municipal and barangay level health workers can design indigenous ways of education programs that will prevent occurrence of goiter.

3. Most of the respondents with signs and symptoms of goiter tend to self-medicate. Self-medication exposed clients to unnecessary health risks (Hardon and van der Geest, 1987: 470). Thus, it is suggested that the provincial, municipal and barangay level health workers should determine how and what type of drugs should be made available to the clients. This should likewise encourage physicians to acquire a list of essential drugs to provide effective information. This should be translated tot he vernacular for clients to understand better the effects of their self-medication. This underlies the crucial role of primary health care programmes and consumer groups in the improvement of drug distribution and use. Grass-roots education and explain the hazards of present practices.

4. Those who claimed they did not consult the public health center for signs and symptoms of goiter, usually consulted private physicians and barangay health workers. Barangay health workers are volunteer workers assisting in making “health for all in the year 2000” happen. Their information in diagnosing illnesses is usually based on their experiences. In this regard, a training on diagnosing illnesses, including goiter, should be provided to them. This will not only enhance their knowledge on basic health care but likewise contribute to the prevention of illness in far flung barangays.

5. The usual action taken for signs and symptoms of goiter include both the professional health workers and traditional health workers (i.e. hilots). This shows the tendency of the clients to marry modern and traditional medicine. The use of traditional medicine reveals the level of trust the clients had with the century-old health practices. Thus, the provincial, municipal and barangay level health workers are encouraged to merge the modern and traditional medicine in their delivery of basic health-care services to the grassroots people.

6. The study focused primarily on establishing the number of cases of goiter in the survey sites. However, Dr. Christine Gielbert recognized that the prevalence of goiter can be due to various factors such as dietary intake, water and environmental goitrogens (Gielbert, 1984: 171). It is therefore recommended that the provincial health office of South Cotabato should organize an interdisciplinary research on the factors affecting the prevalence of goiter so that specific cases can be established. This will help the health authorities to outline programmes that will address the causes of goiter.

Ang Pulong: Usa ka Pamalandong

Sa Tibuok nakong kasinatian sa pilosopiya, wala pa gyod ko makasulay pagsulat ug pagpamilosopiya sa Binisaya. Ingles pirmi ang akong gamit. Mao man kini ang akong naandan kaniadto pa. Ang mga libro ug artikulo sa pilosopiya nga akong ginabasa nahisulat sa Ingles. Sa eskwelahan kaniadto, Ingles man pod ang gamit sa klase. Busa, nakat-on na lang pod kog Ingles.

Hanas ko magbinisaya. Gipakatawo ug midako ko nga Bisaya. Binisaya ang akong ginamit adlaw-adlaw. Apan ngano man nga dili Binisaya ang akong ginagamit sa pagpamilosopiya nga Bisaya man unta ko?
Karun na siguro ang tukmang panahon nga mosulay ko sa pagsulat ug pagpamilosopiya sa Binisaya. Kini akong gihimo dili lang tungod kay gusto nako ibutyag nga gimahal nako ang akong kaugalingong sinultihan. Aduna pay lain ug mas bug-at nga kasikaran. Gusto nako masabtan ug matungkad kon unsa ang kahulogan sa pulong ug kon unsa ang kalabotan niini ngadto sa pagpamilosopiya aron makaingon ta nga adunay kalahian kon magpilosopiya ta sa Binisaya ug kon magpilosopiya ta sa Ingles. kini nga butang ang akong pangitaan og tubag niining papela.

Ang Pulong ug ang Salabotan

Sa tanan nga mga binuhat sa kalibutan, ang tao lang gihatagan og gasa sa salabotan. makamao siya maghuna huna, mamalandong ug mangatarongan – mga lalaki nga dili mahimo sa iro, manok, o kanding. Gumikan niini, nabag-o sa tawo ang nawong sa kalibutan.

Gihatagan niya og kahayag ang kangitngit, kasaba ang kahilom, ug katugnaw ang kainit.

Matod ni Hans-Georg Gadamer, usa ka Aleman nga pilosopo, ang salabotan sa tawo dill hingpit uyamOt (TM, 422-425). Aduna Kini kinutoban. Kon maghunahuna ang tawo, dili sama sa kompyuter nga sa isa lang ka klik, paspas kaayo motrabaho. Una makakab-ot og hingpit nga pagsabot ang atong hunahuna, daghan pa kini agian. Mongadto-nganhi, morag makig-istorya sa kaugalingon. Ang atong kaistpan mangita og sumpay sa lahi-lahi nga mga kasayoran aron inakit-an ang kinatibuk-an. Busa, dili kalit ang pagkawhat sa pagtukib sa auong hunahuna. Hinay-hinay kini.

Apan ang pagngadto-nganhi nga giagian sa atong hunahuna dili mahitabo kon walay pulong. Ang pulong mao ang pinakau kinahanglan aron kita makahunahuna. Ang agog , salabotan l dili malcalihok kon bulagsa pulong. Angpaghan-ay sa atong rnga nahunahuna dungan usab sa paghan-ay sa mga pulong. Kon walay pulong, salabotan. Usa ra ang pulong ug ang salabotan (PH, 27). Dako nga magic kon makahunahuna ang tawo bisan og walay pulong. Mao nga kon dili mapamulong, wala. Kulang man ang pulong aron mahulagway ang atong mga kasinatian, ordinaryo o mistikal, ang pulong pa gihapotl ang naghatag kanato og giya aron kita makaingon nga duna kitay nasilaati.

Kon nagkahiusa ang pulong ug ang salabotan, gipasabot nga ang pulong dili usa ka galamiton sa hunahuna ug, ilabi na, sa tawo. Atong galamiton tnahimong biyaan o ipadaplin. Sa panon nga ato king gamiton, diba kini kanato. Apan kon dili na kinalianglan, ato kitting ii ilabay o ibutang sa daplin nga layo kanato. Ang pulong dill sama niini. Dili puwede nga mogamit ta og usa ka pulong gika sa bodega sa atong mga baba, unya pagkahuman ato kini ibalik usab didto kon asa daghang mga pulong nga atong puwede mapilian (PH, 21). Kon maingon ant ang kahimtang, aduna diay panahon sa hunahuna ug a kinabuhi sa Itawo nga dill niya kinahanglan ang pulong, nga hilayo at a sa pulong.

Sukwahi kini sa atong kasinatian. Walay panahon nga gawas kita sa kalibotan sa pulong. Dili kita makahunahuna ug mabuhi kon walay pulong. Dili kita puwede makalingkawas gikan sa’ pagkabilanggo sa puking bisan og temporaryo lamang. Diha na kita daan sa pulong kaniadto pa. Kita ang giangkon sa pulong. Dili kita ang miangkon niini
sama sa usa ka galamiton. Ang pulong ug salabotan magkauban gayod sa tanang panahon.

Busa, matod ni Gadamer, sayop ang ginatawag nga “Instrumentalist Theory” sa lengguwahe nga maoy sinugdanan sa konstruksyon sa mga artipisyal nga mga pulong (TM, 414 — 417). Kabahin mini wig mga siyentipiko o teknikal nga terminolohiya kon asa morag gipatay ang kinabuhi sa pulong pinaagi sa paghatag mini og usa ka piho (fixed) nga kahulogan. Tinuod nga ang paggamit sa mga teknikal nga termino makahatag og kalinaw sa mga pulong nga dili klaro aron malikayan ang sayop nga interpretasyon. Apan mao usab kini ang hinungdan aron dill makasabot ang ubang tawo sa maong pulong, ilabi na gayod kadtong mga ordinaryong tawo.

Kon ang pulong ug salabotan magkahiusa, dili mahimo nga mas hawod ang tawo sa pulong. Dili siya makalingkawas sa pulong bisan unsa pay iyang buhaton.

Ang Pulong ug ang Kalibotan

Sumala ni Gadamer, dili lang tungod sa pulong nga ang tawo makaangkon og salabotan. Sanglit adunay pulong, ang tawo makabaton usab og kalibotan (TM, 443). Ang kalibotan’ dili usa ka koleksyon sa mga butang nga gitapok sa tawo. Ang kalibotan mao ang konteksto 0 sitwasyon kon asa gilabay ang tawo nga mamahimong basehan sa iyang salabotan. Ang pulong nagpailaila sa tawo ngadto sa usa ka klase nga kinabuhi nga nasinati nang daan sa ubang mga tawo. Magtudlo kini kaniya mahitungod sa usa ka pamaagi sa pagsabot ug pag-aninaw sa kalibotan, sa usa ka tawhanong panghunahuna ug pagpuyo Sukwahi_ sa pagtuo sa sosyolohiya, ang pulong dili nato maingon nga parte lang sa usa ka kultura. Kon dili, mao gyod kini ang sumbanan ug kinabuhi sa usa ka kultura. Pinaagi diha sa sinultihan atong makita ang kultura sa mga tao.

Pananglitan ang pulong nga “po” ug “opo.” Kini nga mga pulong gikan sa Tagalog ug ginagamit sa mga Tagalog kon makig-estorya sa mas tigulang sa ilaha. Kon mogamit ka niani, nagpasabot nga ikaw matinahoron. Apan, kabalo ta nga sa Binisaya, dili nato ni ginagamit nga mga pulong. Kon dili ta mag-“po” ug “opo” sa atong nanay o tatay, manang o manoy, lobo o lola, o si kinsa man nga dill nato kaila apan mas magulang sa atoa, dill nagpasabot nga kita walay pagtahod. Dinhi atong mamatikdan nga ang atong mga ginagamit nga mga pulong magtudl° kanato sa usa ka kalibotan nga lahi sa uban.

Tungod kay daghan man ang tawo nga adunay magkalainiain nga nitibong pinulongan, daghan ug managlahi pod ang pagtan-aw sa tawo sa kinabuhi. Ang mga Bisaya lahi ra sa mga Tagalog. Ang Bisaya kon mag-inestoryahanay, mora og nag-away kay bisan og magdug-ol ra, magsininggitay. Ingon sa uban, kini nagpasabot nga isog ang Bisaya sama ni Lapu-lapu. Ang mga Ilonggo pod, lahi ra ang Sa dill pagdaot, mora og “luyat” mag-estorya ang Ilonggo, nagpasabot nga ang mga Ilonggo mga “swit” nga tawo, apan kon masuko, ikaw na lang motago.

Miingon si Gadamer nga ang tawo dili makasayod kon ikanus-a siya nakahibalo pagsulti sa iyang unang pulong. Siya nahisulod tna diha daan sa usa ka kalibotan. Ang pagkahibalo sa usa ka sinultihin suns sa pagkahibalo kon unsaon paglangoy. Naunlod na kita daan sta tubig. Nakasalom na kita una makalangoy. Diha na kita daan sa pulong una kita makahibalo mo-estorya. Ang pulong sama sa usa ka siyudad diin kits gipakatawo, mipuyo, ug midako.

Apan sama usab sa usa ka siyudad, dili kita gipreso niini. Ang atong nitibong pinulongan nagahatag kanat og kagawasap aron molangyaw sa ubang siyudad, aron makakat-on sa ubang pinulongan. Ang atong nitibong pinulongan modala kanato ngadto sa ubang mga pinulongan aron sila usab ato nga pagapuy-an. Mas paspas gani ta makahibalo kon mopuyo gyod kita sa lugar kon asa kini ginagamit adlaw-adlaw. Dili lang tungod kay magamit nato adlaw-adlaw ang pulong, kon dili usab kay diha dayon masinati Kato ang kalibotan sa alga tao nga naglitok “sa maong sinultihan. Mas masabtan nato ang mga nuances sa matag pulong.

Sukwahi sa giingon sa mga lingguwista, si Gadamer mibarog raga ang pulong dili puwede ikahon ngadto sa porma ofo (PH, 65). Ang porma mao ang gramatika, syntaksis, ug ponetika sa le ggnwahe. Kon atong ibulag ang mensahe sa porma, ang pulong mawad ag bill. Mamatay kini. Walay unod. Ang pulong pulong tungod kay adun kini ginaingon. Ang porma sa pulong mawagtang ngadto sa mensah sa panahon nga kits mogarnit niini. Ang tugon sa pulong mao ang konon nga kalibotan diin kita mipuyo. Busa ang pagtuon kon unsaon pag-estorya sa usa ka pulong dili sama sa pagsag-ulo sa mga estruktura ug balaod sa gramatika. Kon dili, sama kini sa pagsabot kon unsa ang mensahe sa pulong pinaagi sa adlaw-adlaw nga paggamit niini.

Human nato makit-an ang kalabotan sa pulong ngadto sa kinabuhi sa tawo, karon mahimo na siguro natong tan-awon kon unsa ang kalabotan sa pulong ngadto sa pagpamilosopiya.

Ang Pulong ug ang Pagpamilosopiya

Ang pagpamilosopiya ginaingon nga kauban kanunay sa hunahuna nga walay hunong sa pagpangita sa kamatuoran. Ang tawo gihatagan og salabotan aron iyang mas masabtan ang mga panghitabo sa kalibotan. Tungod niini, ang pilosopo migahin og dako nga panahon para magtuki ug marn.al a n dong sa mga importanteng butang sa kinabuhi nga kasagaran gibalewala sa mga ordinaryong tawo. Kinsa ang Diyos, unsa ang Lama ug maayo, ug kinsa ang tawo — kini ang pipila sa mga butang nga buot pangitaan og katin-awan sa pilosopo.

Apan kining mga butanga mapangitaan larnang og katin-awan sa pilosopo sa adlaw-adlaw nga tawhanong kasinatian. Mao nga ang tinuod nga pilosopo dili kadtong naglutaw lang sa hangin, hinunoa siya kadtong nakabarog sa yuta. Kahibalo siya sa mga katikaran sa iyang palibot. Dili siya buta ug bungol. Dili siya nakapuyo sa ibabaw sa tore ug nagalantaw lang sa mga panghitabo sa ubos. Kahibalo siya monaog ug molihok, mo-apil-apil sa mga katikaran, ug makighimamat sa ubang mga tawo. Kon ginapangita sa pilosopo ang kamatuoran, siya mahimong mopahilayo sa mga konkretong butang sa kalibotan.

Ang pagpamilosopiya dili lang puro hunahuna. Adtina pod kiniy lihok. Kon ang pilosopo puno og kinaadman, puy-an usab niya angiyang mga nahikaplagan sa pagtuki ug pamalandong. Mabimo niya kini nga iyang kaugalingong pagtukib ug paglantaw sa kinabuhi ug kalibotan.

Kon namilosopiya ta, gipili nato ang usa ka matang nga kinabuhi ug kalibotan nga atong puy-an hangtod sa atong lubnganan. Buss ang pagpamilosopiya kinabuhi ug Kon mao kini ang buot ipasabot sa pagpamilosopiya, unsa man ang kalabotan sa pulong niini?

Una, imposible makahunahuna ang pilosopo kon walay pulong. Aron’makapamalandong, nanginahanglan siya og mga pulong. Dili ug dill niya makit-an ang kamatuoran kon walay pulong. Ang pulong sama

sa usa ka suga nga naghatag og kahayag aron iyang rnahulagway ang kamatuoran. Kon walay pulong, kangitngit lamang ang mopatigbabww. Walay mahunahunaan ug walay masabtan ang tawo. Sa laktod nga pagkasulti, walay mahitabo nga pagpamilosopiya.

Ikaduha, tungod kay ang pulong kalibotan man, ang pulong magtudlo kanato sa pilosopiya sa usa ka katilingban. Tungod sa paggarnit sa ilang pulong, makat-on kita kon unsa sila maghunahuna, mangatarongan, mamalandong, manimuyo, ug maglantaw sa kinabuhi. Busa kon mamilosopiya kita sa Ingles, misulod kita sa kalibotan sa raga tawo nga ang nitibong sinultihan Ingle’ s. Kita maghunahuna sama sa ilang panghunahuna, magtan-aw sa kalibotan sama sa ilang pagtan-aw sa kalibotan.

Apan kining pagsulod ngadto sa ilang kalibotan nga mahitalbo tungod sa pulong dili perpekto o puro, bisan og mopuyo pa kita sa us al ka komunidad nga Ingles ang nitibong pi nulongan. Impos ible kini mahitabo tungod kay dili nato mabiyaan sa tinuoray ang atong kaugalingong konteksto ug kasinatian. Ang puwede nato mahimol mao lamang ang pagbutang sa Ingles sa Binisaya nga konteksto. Busa makaingon ta  og Binisaya nga Iningles tungod kay atong ginapaningk motan nga ihaom sa atong Binisayang kalibotan ang Ingles nga kalibotan.

Sama usab niini ang mahitabo kon mag-estudyo kita og raga’ pilosopiya sa ubang langyaw nga pilosopo. Dili nato makalimtan ang atong kaugalingong pilosopiya, ang atong kaugalingong pagtan-law sa kinabuhi tungod kay dala-dala nato kini bisan asa ta ipadpad sa kapalaran. Ginahaom lang nato sa atong kaugalingong konteksto ang mga nindot nga. pilosopiyang langyaw. Lisod man tuod masabtan sing pilosopo sa Pranses, Aleman, Griyego, Amerikano, o Indiyan, tungod kay dill man kita makahibalo mosulti sa ilang sinultihan o wala kita nakasinati sa estayl sa ilang kinabuhi, span dili kini nagpasabot nga dill
nato sila masabtan.

Ang pulong dili sagabal sa pagsulod sa pangh nahuna sa ubang tawo. Ang pulong mag-abre usab kanato sa ga ghaan aron kita makasabot sa ubang pagpamilosopiya. Mao nga bisan og lahi-lahi ang atong mga pagsabot sa kamatuoran ug sa kinabuhi, bisan ria  magkalarhi-lahi and atong mga pinulongan, magkasinabtanay gihapon kita. Tungod kay ang pulong mismo nagtudlo kanato nga, isip mga tawo, adunay flea butang nga nasinati natong tanan. Pananglitan tanan kita adunay mga kasinatian sa gugma, pag-antos, kagawasan, kasakit, kalipay, katahoin, ug uban pa.

Konklusyon

Kon magpilosopiya kita sa Binisaya, aduna gayod kini imitation kon magpilosopiya kita sa Ingles. Sanglit ang Binisaya mao ang atong nitibong pinulongan, mas masinati nato kon unsa to maghunahuna, magtuki, mamalandong, mangutana, ug molantaw sa atong kinabuhi. Kay ang pagpamilosopiya migamot man diha sa atong kasinatian, mas mapalalom nato ang atong mga panabot sa tawhanong kinabuhi. Aduna kitay makaplagan nga importante ug matahom nga mga butang nga dill nato sagad makita kon magpilosopiya kita sa langyaw nga pulong.

Apan. kini dili sayon himoon. Angatongmga hunahuna nakonclisyon nang daan nga magpilosopiya sa Ingles kay mao naman kini ang atong naandan. Usa pa pod, wala pa gyod nadokumento nga estayl sa pilosopiya para sa mga Pinoy, ilabi na gayod sa Binisaya. Kini nagpabilin nrdakong hagit sa mga Pilipino. Kay imbis nga mahalon nato ang atong nitibong pinulongan, pirmi naman nato og praktis sa Ingles. Usahay, ato pa gaol Ingles dayon ta aron mapansin. Mag-Ingles-Ingles pod bisan og mall. Ambot kon kanus-a pa ikaulaw ang atong nitibong pinulongan. Mag-Ingles-makita sa mga Pilipino ang kahalangdon sa atong nitibong pinulongan ngadto sa nasudnong kalamboan.

Dako nga hagit para sa mga Pilipinong pilosopo nga magpilosopiya sa kaugalingong pinulongan. Dako usab nga hagit ang pagpangita kon unsa ang pilosopiyang Pinoy. Kinahanglan kita mobalik ngadto sa atong mga karaang tawo, sa mga Lumad, tungod kay didto man nato makit-an ang orihinal na Pilipinhong paghuna-huna, pagtuki, ug pagsabot sa kinabuhi ug kalibotan. Sila ang mga tinuod ug nagpabuhng Pilipino — wala nagpatental sa mga langyaw nga butang, ug wain mga langyaw .

 

Ang Klarong Sabong: Etika, Estetika, ug Epistemolohiya sa Sabong

Daghan tingaling mouyon, ilabi na human sa pagsusi ug pamalandong, nga kon mangita kita og institusyon dinhi sa Pilipinas nga malahutayon o adunay kinaugalingong kahan-ay usa na niana ang sabong. Ang sabong adunay kaugalingong kinaiya ug nagapadayon ang klarong dagan bisag walay suporta sa gobyerno, pagwali sa simbahan, pag-organisa sa mga non-government organization, pagpinansiya sa mga langyawang nasud, o pagtudlo sa mga eskwelahan. Ang katingalahan lang kay nganong nakaikyas kini sa mga matukiong mata sa mga tighunahuna sa nasud. Nagtuo kami nga sa hisgotanang etika, estetika ug epistemolohiya, ang sabong makahatag og dako ug bilihong kahayag bahin sa atong pagkatawo ug pagkapilipino.

Kining mosunod nga paningkamot usa ka kontribusyon sa nagasugod na nga panghatag og atensyon sa kultura isip tubod sa mga labas nga panghunahuna nga makapabaskog sa atong pagpilosopiya, ilabi na dinhi sa Mindanao. Nagsugod kini sa among klase sa Methods of Research sa kursong MA Philosophy. Sa among pagpangita og lainlaing lakang sa tininuod nga pamilosopiya sa atong kahimtang, nagtuo kami nga ang pilosopiya dili lang maggikan sa mga teksto. Ang pilosopiya posibleng motumaw dili pinaagi lang sa paghimo og teksto gikan sa teksto, kondili pagdokumento ug pamalangdong usab sa kasinatian sama sa ginapaningkamutan na sa sikolohiyang Pilipino (cf. Obusan ug Enriquez 1994; Pe-Pua 1982).

Dili pud ni kinahanglan maggikan lang sa usa ka indibidwal nga pilosopo nga naghinuktok sulod sa usa ka kuwarto o duol sa kalayo, kondili sa mismong pakiglambigit sa nagkalainlaing pakigbisog sa katilingban mismo sa institusyong akademiko (cf. Alejo 1990, 2002). Posible pud ang pagtinabangay sa parnilosopiya, sama sa pahina sa pagtanom og mais o pagbalhin sa balay. Ug dakong ikatabang ang paggamit sa kaugalingong pinulongan sama sa nasugdan na sa pipila ka mga pilosopo sa Pilipinas (Ferriols). Sa ingon niining panghunahuna, among namatikdan nga ang sabong usa ka bahandianong kinaadman sa mga yanong Pilipinong pilosopo ug nga kini naa ra man diay sa atong palibot. Gamay pa lang ang nagsulat bahin sa sabong sulod sa akademikong diskurso (e.g Bragando 2002; Guggenheim ND; cf. Geertz 1978). Nagtuo kami nga mas mapalambo ang pilosopiya pinaagi sa kultura, ug sa mga obserbasyon sa antropolohiya ug etnograpiya.

Sa una pa lamang, gusto na namong ipaklaro nga kining papel-pamalandong dill kompleto nga etnograpiya sa sabong. Sa among pilosopikong pagtuki, nagpokus kami sa usa ka konsepto nga kanunay motunaw sa hisgotanang sabong. Kini mao ang “klaro.” Sa among papel, magsugod kami sa pagpaambit sa kahulogan sa klaro. Ipakita dayon namo nga kini makahatag og dug-ang kahayag sa pagtuki sa etika, estetika ug epistemolohiya sa “klarong sabong.”

Ang Klaro nga Sabong

Kanunay namo madunggan ang pulong nga `klaro’ sa among pagsuruy-suroy sa sabongan ug sa pakig-istorya sa mga sabongero ug sa nagkalainlaing tawo sa palibot sa sabongan. Mao nang amo karong ipunting ang klaro sa sabong Magsugod kita sa paggamit sa klaro sa ordinar yong hisgotanan.

Ang “klaro” Sa Ordinaryong Pinulongan

Ang pulong “klaro” usa ka termino nga sagad natong madunggan, ug gamiton sa inadlaw-adlaw nato nga panlihuk-lihok.

1. Kon dili tin-aw ang atong panan-aw sa atong pagbangon sayo sa buntag, manghilam-os dayon ta aron moklaro ang atong panan-aw.

2. Kon mangutana kita sa atong kapikas o sa kusinera: “Unsay imong giluto?”unya hinay ang iyang tubag, moingon ta: “Klaroha kay wala ko kadungog!”

3. Sa pag-adto nato sa trabahoan, unya mahimamat nato ang dugay na nga higala, mangumusta dayon kita sa iyaha. kasagaran nga madungog nato nga tubag: “Maayo man, pero wala pa lagi klaro.” 0 dili ba hinuon, “Ania, wala pa gihapoy klaro.”

4. Kon pagtudlo ang atong trabaho, mangutana kita sa atong estudyante kon kumusta ang gihatag nga assignment. Ang kasagaran nilang tubag: “Nahuman man sir or ma’am, pero walay klaro. Lisud man kaayo.”

5. Ang pinakapait kon motubag sila: “Wala man kay klaro sir or ma’am, uy: Lisud man kaayo!”

6. Kon naa ta sa opisina rnagtrabaho, sultian ta sa atonglabaw, “Aduna kitay transaksyon sunod semana. Martha kuno kon dill ba kita lugi niana.”

7. Ug kon mangutana ta sa mga mag-uuma kon kumusta ang ilang ani, ang sagad ta nga madunggan: “Walay klaro. Wala man guy klaro ang p an ahon .”

8. Kon mangutana ta sa mga mananagat kon daghan ba ang ilang kuha, ang atong madungog: “Walay klaro. Gamay ra kaayol”

9. Mahitungod sa politika, mao usab kini ang sagad natong mabati: “Wala gyuy klaro kining atong panggobyemo karon. Bisan kinsay molingkod walay kalainan.”

10. Kon atong pangutan-on ang sabongero: “Unsa man, Bay, gwapo ba kanang imong manok?” Ang kasagaran nilang tubag: “Oo, klaro gyud kaayong modaug ni, ba. Kuyaw ni og klase!” Sa mga pananglitan nga naipadayag sa unahan, atong makita kon unsa kagamit o kaimportante ang pulong nga klaro. Atong nakita nga bisag kinsa o unsang klase sa tawo nagagamit niining maong pulong.

Ang Tulo Ka Kinaiya Sa Klaro

Dinhi atong masuta nga ang pulong klaro diay, usa ka pulong nga nagahulagway ug nagabutyag og usa ka panlantaw. Kining paghulagway mahimong negatibo (walay klarong negosyo, klaro nga patay na!, ug ubang susamang mga pulong) o positibo (klaro gyud nga siya…, Klaro naman na kaayo, ug ubang susamang pulong).

Positibo man o negatibo ang paggamit sa maong pulong, atong makita nga ang nagagamit niini anaa sa posisyon sa kasiguroan, kasiguroan nga mora bag miagi na siyag proseso sa pagmatuod sa usa ka kamatuoran (klaro na! Wala guy klaro!). Kining posisyon sa kasiguroan iyang gibase sa unsay iyang nakita, nadungog, ug nabati. Apan sa laing bahin, kon anaa usab kita sa kahimtang sa pagduhaduha ug pagkalibog, o kaha naa tay nasayran apan kombinsido kita nga aduna pay kulang niini, dill ba mogamit usab kita sa pulong nga klaro? (Klaro na ba na?, Pagklaro dihal, ug ubang susamang paggamit sa pulong). Sa maong kondisyon, mangayo ta og dugang nga pagpasabot tungod kay nagduhaduha pa ta sa atong nasayran. Dinhi atong makita nga ang paggamit diay sa pulong klaro adunay tulo ka mga kinaiya nga angay bantayan ug mahibaloan: ang negatibo nga klaro, ang positibo nga klaro, ug ang pagduhaduha nga klaro.

Ang Klarong Sabong

Sa sabong, adunay daghang mga butang nga gikinihanglan natong bantayan ug mahibalo-an kon gusto natong masayod kon klaro ba ang usa ka sabong.

Una sa tanan, importante ug gikinahanglan gayud nga sa sabong anaay tawo o mga tawo nga nagkasinabot nga magpasiugda og usa ka sabong. Kining mga tawhana nga nagkasinabot mao ang atong gitawag og tigdumala.

Mg tigdumala gikinahanglan nga adunay tingog, respetado, ug nailhan na sa kadaghanan sa mga sabongero, mapuntos o makumon-tawo man nga sabongero, aron ang mga patakaran nga ilang ipasunod sulod ug gawas sa sabongan respetoan ug sundon gayud sa mga sabongero.

Ang pinakimportante nga trabaho sa tigdumala mao ang pagpanday og mga patakaran sa sabongan. Kining mga patakaran kinahanglang uyonan sa mga sabongero kay kon dill, mogawas nga mingaw ang usa ka sabongan.

Apil sa trabaho sa tigdumala mao ang pagpangita og permanenteng iugar (sabongan) aron ang mga sabongero motultol na lang didto, ang pagpangayo og permiso sa gobyemo; ug ang pagdestino og mga tawo nga motabang pagpadagan sa sabongan.

Daghang tawo ang kinahanglan axon molihok ang sabongan. Naay mga tawong mohimog propaganda sama sa pag-anunsiyo sa usa ka umaabot nga sabong. Naay tawong ipabantay sa pultahan sa sabongan aron mokontrol sa mga sabongero nga mosulod ug mogawas, ug usab aron mokolekta sa pulta o pinto (kasagaran babaye tungod kay mas respetado sa mga sabongero). Naay moorganisa og mga kristo aron maoy motabang sa pagpahiluna sa mga pusta ilabi na sa mga puntos. Naay mga tawo sa montonan nga maoy modawat sa kwarta nga ideposito sa tag-iya sa manok sa dill pa ang akto sa sabong. Naay kuyme aron maoy modesisyon ug mohukom sa magsabong nga manok. Naay mamaligya sulod sa sabongan aron dili na magsige og gawas-sulod ang mga sabongero. Naay mga tawo nga, motan-aw ug momintanar sa kahapsay sulod sa sabongan.

Kining mga tawo nga girugyanan og nakalainlaing buluhaton sa tigdumala kinahanglan nga kinasingkasing nga mohimo sa ilang tahas. Sama pananglitan sa kuyme. ng kuyme kinahanglan nga listo, abtik, ug may baroganan sa paghirnog desisyon kay anaa diha nakasentro ang tanang mata sa mga sabongero.

Dinhi atong makita nga ang klaro nga sabong diay nagadepende o nagabase sa nagadurnala sa sabongan. Ang tigdumala kinahanglan nga maoy motan-aw sa kinatibuk-ang dagan sa sabong, apan kini wala magpasabot nga ang tigdumala maoy magbuot sa mga ginagmay nga masabotan o nasabotan na sa mga sabongero sama pananglit sa ilang sugal (aduna bay partida o wala).

Ang tigdumala motan-aw apan dill magbuot-buot sa mga kasabotan nga makab-ot sa mga sabongero basta ang maong kasabotan dili layo o dili sukwahi sa kinatibuk-ang patakaran sa sabongan.

Sa sabong, basta diay naay mga sinaligan nga tawo nga moatiman sa nagkalainlaing buluhatonon, ang sabong nga pagahimuon nianang sabongana, klaro.

Apan igo na ba kini? Dili. Aron matawag gayud nga klaro ang usa ka sabong, gikinihanglan nga ang nagsabong nga manok sulod sa ruweda klaro usab. Mamahimo lamang nga klaro ang manok nga nagsabong sa ruweda kon ang matag manok adunay usa o duha ka taxi sa till depende sa nakasabotan sa mga tag-iya. Kining taxi maoy mopiho nga ang usa ka manok modaug ug ang usa mapildi, gawas kon tabla ang sabong.

Ang pagkaklaro sa tigdumala ug ang pagkaklaro sa manok dill pa gihapon igo nga basehan nga klaro na ang usa ka sabong kon ang mga sabongero dili o walay klaro.

Ang Klarong Sabongan

Kining bahin rnaghisgot sa mismong sabongan, labi na sa kin,* ug kahan-ay niini. Magsugod kita sa among nasinati sa gawas sa sabongan ug isunod nato ang sulod sa sabongan. Gikan sa kasinatan namo sa sabongan, atong susilion kon unsa ang among ipasabot sa sabongan, segun sa among panlantaw.

Sa Gawas sa Sabongan

Domingo ang kasagarang adlaw sa sabong. Aduna puy mga sabong nga mahitabo sa bisan unsang adlaw, labi na kon adunay pista. Apan ang among ipakita diri mao ang sabongan sa adlaw nga Domingo. Usa makasulod sa sabongan, ang tanang mga sabongero kinahanglang mobayad og pulta sa kontador aron paagion sila sa puwerta. Ug kami ningbayad usab aron makasulod. Among namatiktan, sama sa namatikdan ni Rizal (Kapitolo 34 sa Noli Me Tangere), nga mga babaye ang mga purtera (ang tig-bantay sa puwerta, pultahan o geyt). Amo silang gipangutana nganong dili man mga lalaki ang nagbantay? Nganong babaye man nga dali lang man unta sila daugdaugon sa mga lalaki? Apan baliktad ang among nakuhang tubag gikan sa mga purtera. Ingon nila, ang sabong dula sa mga maayong laki ug supak sa pagkamaayonglaki angmosukol sa mga babaye. Mao na nga babaye ang mga purtera aron walay away nga mahitabo. Aduna man guy tawo nga dili mobayad og pulta ug magpasumangil nga siya nakabayad na pero hinggawas tang kadyot. Sa ingon niining kahimtang, ang babaye lang ang makasita niining lakiha nga walay mahitabong gubot. Kon lalaki ang naa sa pultahan ug sitahon niya ang usa ka lalaking nagpasumangil, kini mosangpot sa away tungod kay maigo kuno ang lakinhong garbo sa gisita. Dako kining isyu kay ang sabong giisip nga dula sa maayong laki.

Sa sulod sa kompawnd sa sabongan, makita nato ang mga nagkadaiyang manok nga giparisparis. Anaa pud ang mga nagkalainlaing paninda, mga babaye o tsiks nga namiga o nagalingaw sa mga aficionado, mga tigulan& bata, ug bisan unsang tawhana gikan sa bisan unsang hut-ong, trabaho o dapit. Diri makita nato ang mga bata nga ginadala sa ilang mga amahan. Kining mga bata ginatudloan sa ilang mga amahan sa mga pamaagi sa sabong aron maoy mosunod sa ilang mga amahang sabongero.

Diri pud madunggan nato ang mga singgit ug saba sa sulod, nga makaingon ka nga basin naay kagubot didto. Madunggan nato ang singgit nga dili masabtan kay moipon na kini sa ubang singgit. Grabe ang kagubot sa sulod, sobra pa sa palengke ang kasaba.

Adunay duha ka agianan alang sa mga yanong tawo aron makasulod sa sabongan mismo. Ang usa ka agianan paingon sa kinatas-ang dapit sa sabungan ug kinalay-an sa ruweda. Ang ikaduhang pultahan paingon sa ubos nga dapit sa mga puntos kon diin ang mga sabongero sa sulod mahimong makakita pag-ayo sa mga magsampok nga manok. Dili tanan makasulod diri gawas na lang kon mobayad sa tigbantay sa pultahan sama sa kantidad sa pagsulod sa kompawnd. Ang mga mananari ug uban pang mga dagkong tawo adunay laing agianan pasulod.

Usa mahimo ang sabong sulod sa arena, naay pagparis sa manok nga himuon sa mga sabongero sa luna nga gitawag ug paris-paris. Sa mga dinagkong sabong, gamiton usab ang kulongan sa manok kon ang tag-iya dayo. (Tan-awa ang Pigura 1.)

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Sa Sulod sa Sabongan

Dihang atua mi sa gawas sa sabongan, makasulti mi nga gubot sa sulod. Karon nga ania na mi sa sulod, amo ba gihapong maingon nga gubot gyud diri sa sulod? Dili ba kaha nga lain lang ang kalibotan diri sa sulod? Nga lahi ang kahan-ay dinhi sa among nahibal-ang kahan-ay?

Sa pagsulod namo sa sabongan ang kasaba sa mga singgit ug ang mga nagwara-warang mga kamot maoy mitagbo kanamo. Taodtaod sa among paglingkod uban sa mga sabongerong nakapalibot kanamo, hinayhinay mi nga napahibagay sa kalikopan. Nalingaw mi sa among nakita ug hinayhinay usab namong nakita ang kahan-ay.

Ang Gambalay sa Sabongan ug ang mga Sabongero

Ang sabongan adunay pipila ka bahin, apan upat lang ang among hisgotan dinhi. Kini mao ang ruweda, ang dapit sa mga dagkong tawo kon VIP, ang duol nga dapit (puntos), ug ang layong dapit. (Tan-awa ang Pigura 2.)

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Ang ruweda. Kini ang sentro sa sabongan thin mahitabo ang panagsampok sa mga manok. Diri pud ang puwesto sa masyador o ang tawong tigpahibalo sa dagan sa sabong sulod sa ruweda ug ang tig-angay sa mga pusta. Naa pud diri ang kuyme o ang tawong mohukom kon kinsang manok ang midaog Diri sa ruweda maggikan ang mga pagbating makapadasig, makapalingaw, makapasalig, makapabuhi, makapalagsik, makapahuyang, makapaluya, makapahapay ug uban pang bation sa sabongan. Kining ruweda ang naghatag og kinabuhi sa sabongan. Ang tanan nga anaa sa sabongan adunay panaghiusa ug kini ang pagtutok sa ruweda. Ang tanang kalihokan sa gawas sa ruweda nahisubay sa mg-a panghitabo sulod sa ruweda. .

Ang dapit sa mga dagkong tawo kon VIP. Din nato makit-an ang mga dato, artista, opisyal sa gobyerno, ug politiko sama sa mga mayor, gobernador, kongresrnan ug senador. Kining dapita lahi og disenyo sa uban kay pinturado kini sugod sa kinaubsan hangtud sa kinatas-an. Aduna kiniy maayong lingkoranan, luag ang espasyo, ug busa hayahay kaayo ang mga tawong nakalingkod diri. Labaw sa tanan, kining dapita dali lang mailhan kay espesyal ang porma niini alang kuno sa mga espesyal nga tawo, ug pila lang pud ka tawo ang mahimong makalingkod dinhi. Diri pud mahitabo ang mga dinagkong pusta nga moabot og pila ka libo o bisan milyon. Ginaingon nga kining dapita nagsalamin sa hataas nga hut-ong sa atong katilingban.

Ang duol nga dapit (dapit sa mga puntos). Kini gitawag namong duol tungod kay nahiduol kini sa sentro. Makita pag-ayo sa mga sabongero diri ang pagsampok sa mga manok sa ruweda. Pipila lang pud ka mga tawo ang mahimong makalingkod diri, dili tungod kay pipila lang ang lingkoranan kondili, adunay pay dugang nga bayad ang pagsulod sama sa kantidad sa pagsulod sa kompawnd sa sabongan. Diri mahitabo ang kasagarang pusta nga dili moubos og pila ka gatos o kapin libo. Ginaingon nga kining dapita nagsalamin sa hatungang hut-ong sa atong katilingban.

Ang layo nga dapit. Kini gitawag namong layo tungod kay layo na kini sa ruweda. Ang tanan mahimong makasulod dinhi tungod kay apil na sa pulta ang pagsulod nganhi. Kining dapita ang adunay kinadaghanang malingkuran, katuluhon o kaupaton ang kapasidad sa duol nga dapit. Diri mahitabo ang mga ginagmay nga pusta nga mokantidad sa kinaubsan diyes pesos ngadto sa kapin gatos. Naa say pipila nga makapusta og dinagko tungod kay nakadaog sila sa usa ka higayon. Ginaingon nga kining dapita nagsalamin sa ubos nga hut-ong sa atong katilingban.

Kining mga bahin o dapit sa sabongan aduna puy mg-a utlanan, ug ang usa ka tawo dili mahimong motabok ngadto sa pikas, gawas lang kon moagi siya sa pultahan gikan sa gawas. Apan ang pusta mahimong molapuslapos sa bisan asang dapit. Sa laing pagkaistorya, mahimong makigpusta ang mga tawo sa layo nga dapit batok sa mg-a tawo sa duol nga dapit, ug ang mga tawo sa duol o layo nga dapit mahimong makigpusta batok sa dapit sa mg-a dagkong tawo.

Ang kahan-ay sulod sa sabongan nakabase sa kinaiyanhong gambalay sa sabongan. Nasayod kita nga ang sabongan adunay sentro, ang ruweda, ug ang tanang sabongero nakapalibot niini. Kining sentro sa pormang ruweda nagpasabot og usa ka panaghiusa sa mga nakapalibot niini.

Adunay mga lainlaing dapit sa sulod sa sabongan apan dili kini hingpit nga lahi sa usag-usa. Usa lang ang ginatagaan og tutok sa tanan, ang ruweda. Bisag asa maglingkod ang sabongero, dili kini babag aron mopusta kutob sa iyang gusto. Dili tungod kay anaa ang usa sa layong dapit ubos na siya nga klaseng sabongero. Ang dapit nga atong nahisgotan nag-tudlo Lang kon asa nahimutang ang sabongero, ug dili kon unsa ang kutob sa iyang pusta, tungod kay ang pusta mahimong motabok bisan asang dapit sa sabongan. Dali lang ang pagpadagan sa pusta kay ang garnblay sa sabongan adunay sentro diin nakapalibot ang tanan.

Ang mag Negosyador

Sa sabongan aduna kitay makita nga duha ka klaseng negosyador sa pusta. Sila mao ang masyador ug ang kristo. Sila ang mga bida sa sabongan kay ilang ginahan-ay ang mga nagkadaiyang interes sa mga sabingero sa ilang pusta.

Ang masyador mao ang sabongero nga nagaangay o nagapatas sa sentrong pustaanay. Kining sentrong pustaanay mao ang pustaanay sa duha ka tag-iya sa manok. Ang pusta dili patas kon labaw ang pusta sa usa (lyamado) batok sa pikas (dehado). Sa maong kahimtang, anf masyador mangagda sa uban pang mga sabongero sa gwas sa ruweda aron modugang og pusta sa dehado aron mopatas ang pusta sa masigkapikas. Pananglit kon P3,000 ang pusta sa usa ka tag-iya sa manok, unya P2,000 lang ang pusta sa lain pan tag-iya sa manok. Mangita karon og dugang P1,000 nga pusta ang masyador gikan sa ubang sabongero aron mopatas ang pustaanay. Tungod kay ang masyador nahimutang sa sentro, nalangkoban sa iyang pakignegosasyon ang nakapalibot sa ruweda ug iyang ginadawat ang pusta sa bisan asang dapit. Diri makaingon kita nga dili lalim ang trabaho sa masyador labi na ang pagkuwenta sa pusta ug pagtimaan sa mga sabongero nga hingpusta ug ang ilang nagkadaiyang pusta.

Ang negosasyon sa masyador sentralisado kay ang tanang mamustaay adunay direktang kalambigitan sa sentro. Diri makita nato ang paghugpong sa mga sabongero diha sa sentro. Kini ang unang atimanon nga pusta usa pa ang ubang pusta.

Mogamit ang masyador og mikropono aron ipahibalo sa tanan kon unsa na ang dagan sa sabong. Ang masyador ang gadala sa simbolo sa pagdumala diha sa sabongan. Siya ang magpahibalo kon ang manok ba sa mayroon o sa wala, ang maghusay sa dili patas nga pusta, ang magdeklara nga puwede na ang iya-iyang pamusta, ang magpahinumdom sa mga sabongero sa gawas sa ruweda aron walay away ug gubpt. Sa laing pagkaistorya, ang masyador ang ginaila nga representante sa tigdumala sa sabongan, ug tigsentro sa mga butang nga angay isentro.

Ang ikaduha nga negosyador mao ang kristo. Ang kristo mao ang negosyador para sa iyang kaugalingong interes ug wala nay labot ang sentro sa iya. Ginatawag siya nga kristo kay sige siya magdupa sama kang Hesukristo sa krus. Ang pagdupa sa kristo isip simbolo sa kaugalingong pakignegosasyon nagapasabot og pipila ka butang segun sa among pagsabot. Kini nagapakita nga bukas ang iyang kaugalingon ug adunay maayong kabubut-on sa ubang kristo. Andam usab siya modawat ug mogakos sa ubang kristo, ug sa posibiliadad sa kapildihan. Ug gusto siya mokab-ot sa kamot sa uban o motunol sa iyang kamot ngadto sa uban nga layo kaniya.

Kini nga postura usa ka importanteng simbolo sa kristo tungod kay kini nagapasabot nga matinud-anon siya sa iyang pakiglambigit sa uban, dala ang iyang kaugalingong interes, nanghinaot siya nga maayo usab ang buot sa uban kay siya adunay maayong buot- kini ang pagpakita nga siya matinud-anon. Sa iyang pagdupa, nagapangita siya og kristo nga mahimong kaparis sa iyang interes ug kining pagparis usa ka pamaagi nga mahatagan og kahan-ay ang ilang magkakontra nga interes. Tungod kay magsumpaki ang ilang interes, nagkahiusa sila segun sa lakinhong katahoran nga ilang barogan ang ilang kahiusahan. Matinud-anon ang kristo sa pagpresenta sa iyang kaugalingon ug ang pagdawat niya sa lain pang kristo. Walay hinungdan nga dili nila tumanon ang ilang nahiusahan kay kon unsa siya kamatinud-anon mao usab ang pikas parte.

Dinha sa kristo makita nato nga ang mga sabongero adunay mga nagkadaiyang interes. Tungod niini dili nila kapugngan ang ilang mga kaugalingon nga mag alingasa, nga moresulta sa grabeng singgit ug saba. Kini mahitabo sa sinugdanan tungod kay ang matag kristo nangita pa og paris unsa siya mahimutang. Mahimo natong tawgon kini nga pakighiusa ug pakighusay sa mga magkasumpaki.

Ang paghugpong sa mga kristo mahimo natong itandi sa usa ka jigsaw puzzle. Ang kahusay sa tanan mao ang pagtibuok sa usa ka porma pinaagi sa pagpahiluna sa matag piyesa sa ensaktong lugar. Ang kristo mura pud og piyesa nga nanginahanglan og kaubang piyesa aron sila matibuok. Tungod kay daghan ang mga kristo, ang pahugpong sa matag usa kanila mao ang gipangitang kahapsay ug kahan-ay sulod sa sabongan.

Ang kalihokan sa mga kristo nagapasabot nga kninaiya sa tawo ang makigrelasyon sa ubang tawo sa iyang kaugalingong negosasyon o transaksyon. Dili tanan ibutang sa sentro o dili tanan dumalaon sa sentro. Sa sabongan walay hingpit nga pagdumala sa sentro kay ang mga sabongero adunay kadasig sa pagpadayag sa ilang kaugalingong interes. Ang kadasig sa pagpadayag mahimo lang mahitabo kon tugtan ang tanan nga mopusta nga walay magbuot sa kalihokan niini.

Busa, ang duha ka negosyador adunay kalainan sa ilang mga katungdaan. Ang masyador adunay kalambigitan sa negosasyong pampubliko diin ang tanan nakasentro kaniya. Samtang ang kristo adunay kalambigitan dili lang sa negosasyong pampubliko kondili sa  negosasyong pangpribado usab. Diri nato makita nga adunay duha ka pakigrelasyon sa ubang tawo: ang pakigrelasyon sa sentro ug ang pakigrelasyon sa usag-usa. Niining pakigrelasyon adunay sistema aron mahapsay ang dagan sa tanan.

Ang Kahimtang sa Sulod

Ang sabong magsugod sa pagpahibalo sa masyador kon unsang manok ang mayroon o wala. Ang “mayroon” nagarepresenta sa manok nga lyamado o adunay gamay nga lamang sa katakos ug kantidad sa pusta. Ang “wala” nagarepresenta sa manok nga dehado o baliktad sa pikas. Diri makit-an pud kon unsang manok ang adunay maayong barog segun sa atong kaugalingong pangilatis. Ang manok patusikan sa laing manok aron mapaisog kini isip pagpangandam sa sampok. Miyentras ginabuhat kini, ang masyador nagaplastar sa kantidad sa pusta segun sa nahiuyonan, ug diha-diha iya kining patason o angayon. Ang masyador mangita og dugang nga pusta aron itugbang sa taas nga pusta sa lyamado. Kini buhaton pinaagi sa pakignegosyasyon tali sa masyador ug mga kristo.

Pagkahuman nga mapatas ang pusta, mosinyas ang masyador nga puwede na ang mga iya-iyang pustaanay. Kiaro diri sa sulod sa sabongan ang pagkabahin sa tulo ka hut-ong apan dili kini babag sa mga sabongero sa ubos nga hut-ong sa pagpusta batok sa mga sabongero sa taas nga hut-ong. Makit-an nato nga bisag ang mga tawo sa ubos nga hut-ong layo sa sentro, sama sa ginaingon nga ang mga kabus layo sa serbisyo sa gobyerno, mahimo gihapong mobatok ang ubos nga hut-ong sa taas nga hut-ong. Kon ang sabongero sa taas nga hut-ong gustong mopusta og dos mil, apan dili kaya tugbangon sa sabongero sa ubos nga hut-ong kay usa ka gatos lang ang iyang kaya, maghugpong ang mga sabongero sa ubos nga hut-ong. Kon adunay baynte ka mga sabongero nga mopusta og tagsa ka gatos, mahimo nang suklan ang dos mil nga pusta sa sabongero sa taas nga hut-ong. Ang pustaanay walay utlanan. Mahimong makipagpusta si bisan kinsa kang bisan kinsa, sa bisan asang dapit, sa bisan unsang kantidad.

Human niining mga negosasyon, madunggan na nato ang mga singgit o kasaba sa mga kristo diha sa sulod ug gawas sa sabongan. Hinay pirmero ang kasaba, unya mokusog, unya mohinay na usab, dayong mohilom. Diha-diha magsugod na ang pagsampok sa mga manok.

Samtang magsarnpok ang mga manok, wala kaayoy madunggan nga saba kay ang tanan nakatutok sa ruweda. Pero kon ang sampokay dugay mahuman, o ang resulta bali sa gidahom nga mahitabo— dili mayroon ang midaog kondili ang wala, mosangpot kini og mga gamayng kasaba, kantiyaw ug mga singgit. Pildi ang manok kon kini mamatay o dili na mosukol. Kon walay klarong manok ang modaog (tungod kay ang duha luya na kaayo ug dili na mosampok), ang mohukom kon kinsay daog mao ang sentensyador o kuyme.

Human sa paghukom, mosunod dayon ang pagbinayranay. Ang hingpusta sa napilding manok mobayad ngadto sa hingpusta sa hingdaog nga manok segim sa ilang nasabotang kantidad. Din nato makita ang mga nagkadaiyang hitsura sa mga sabongero. Adunay nalipay kay hingdaog, adunay nagmug-ot kay napildi.

Sa wala pa namo sudla ang sabongan, kami nakaingon nga gubot ug samok kaayo sa sulod tungod sa grabeng saba nga madunggan namo sa gawas. Apan sa among pagsulod, aduna miy nakit-an nga lahing klase nga kahan-ay gikan sa gambalay niini ug sa sistema sa pagpatuman sa klarong sabongan. Ang pagpatuman sa gusto sa matag usa dili mahimong isentro o dumalaon. Ang kasaba sa sulod sa sabongan nga madunggan sa gawas mao ang singgit sa kaugalingong interes isip pagpadayag sa usa ka kaugalingon. Kining pagpadayag sa kaugalingon dili kanunay magpaubos sa lagda o pagdumala sa sentro. Busa human maplastar sa sentro ang nakasentrong pusta, tugtan na ang mga pribadong pustaanay. Ang sabongan usa ka kahimtang diin ang kinaiyanhong gambalay adunay sentro nga molihok alang sa pagsinabtanay ug panaghiusa sa tanan bisag ang matag usa adunay kaugalingong interes. Dili babag ang kaugalingong interes sa pagsinabtanay ug paghiusahay sa mga tawo. Mao kini ang buot ipasabot sa sabongan alang kanamo.

Ang Klarong Sabongero

Sa amo pang gihunahuna ang pamilosopiya bahin sa sabong, nasibot kaayo kami kay wala mi alamag sa sabong. Gamay lang ang among nasabtan bahin niini. Ug kay limitado lamang ang among kahibalo, pursigido na hinuon mi sa pagpadayon sa paningkamot nga makasabot kon unsa gayud ang klarong sabong.

Ang unang bahin niining paningkamot mao ang pakiglambigit sa mga sabongero. Naa na diha ang pag-adto sa sabongan ug pakigkukabildo sa mga batikang sabongero. Lainlaing kasinatian ang among nabati sa sabongan; lain-lain usab nga panlantaw ang among naaninaw. Nasinati namo sa sabongan ang nagkadaiyang pagbati: nalipay ang midaog, naglagot ang napildi, giganahan ang mga dagkog pusta. Naa puy naglamig katulog taliwala sa kasaba ug kapintas nga nahitabo. Kon atong istoryahan ang mga babayeng nanagbantay sa ganghaan, moingon pud sila nga nagkadaiya ang batasan sa mga sabongero. Naay badlongon, sipat, bungog, apan naa puy buotan.

Magsugod to sa mga pangutana bahin sa buotang sabongero. Kinsa man ang maayo o buotang sabongero? Unsa ang mga kinaiya aron mamahimo siyang klarong sabongero? Kining mga pangutana pagsulay lamang sa pagsabot nga naay kinaadman bahin sa pamatasan diha sa sabong.

Wala nay Laing makatubag sa pangutanang kinsa ang maayong sabongero kondili ang sabongero mismo. Misulay mi og istoiya sa pipila kanila ug nagkadaiya ang ilang tubag sa pangutana. Apan mahulog ang mga tubag sa usa ra ka terminolohiya — “klaro.” Buot ipasabot, ang maayong sabongero, klarong tawo. Sama ra kon kita mosulti bahin sa maayong sabongero, moingon ta “Klaro siya nga sabongero.” 0 kon naay dili maayong sabongero, moingon ta: “Walay klaro na nga sabongero.”

Timailhan sa Klarong Sabongero

Tungod kay daghan ang konsepto sa klarong sabongero, atong hisgotan ang mga timailhan niini. Ang unang timailhan sa maayong sabongero mao ang iyang pusta. Pirming ingnon nga ang sabongerong dagkog pusta mao ang maayo, ug kadtong mopusta og ginagmay lamang, ingnon nga walay klaro! Kon atong susihon, kining unang timailhan naggikan sa panlantaw sa kahusay. Kamatikdan nga kasagaran sa dagkong sabong, kon dinagko ang pusta, naay kahusay. Ang kahusay dinhi nagalarawan sa klarong pinustahay ug panagsabot. Moingon kita nga naay klarong pagsinabtanay tali sa duha ka partido. Kini gurnikan kay dinagkong kantidad sa kwarta ang giistoryahan. Apan dili kini nagpasabot nga ang mga sabongero nga ginagmay lamang ang ipusta, wala na silay klaro. Atong ipaldaro nga naa sa maayong pagsinabtanay ang kahulogan sa maayong sabongerol Kon maayo kang kasabot, klaro kang sabongero.

Sa dugang nga pagpalalom, ang kahusay nga resulta sa klaro nga pagsinabtanay sa matag transaksyon, nagpaila sa pagbatok sa maayong sabongero sa bisag unsang kagubot. Kini tungod kay siguradong gubot ang resulta sa dili klarong transaksyon. Atong hunahunaon nga dili kapugngan ang kainit sa ulo labi na kon ang tawo kanunay mapildi sa pusta, o mapakyas sa gisaligang manok, o mailad sa isigkasabongero, o madiskontento sa desisyon sa masyador ug tikasan sa gilabanang manok. Ang kainit sa ulo bation sa daghang sabongero diha sa bulangan. Apan taliwala niini, kahusay gihapon ang sulod sa hunahuna sa maayong sabongero. Kon giunsa niya pagpugong ang kainit sa iyang ulo aron masinati gihapon ang kahusay ug malikayan ang kagubot sa bulangan, ang maayong sabongero na ang nahibalo!

Ang ikaduhang timailhan sa maayong sabongero mao ang palakat o lihok. Tungod kay ang sabong usa ka dula, kinahanglan nga ang sabongero naay mga maayong kalaki aron pirming modaog. Kadtong mga sabongero nga mogawas sa bulangan nga malipayon kav dako ang daog giila nga klarong sabongero. Tinuod nga dill lalim ang mamahimong maayong sabongero kon ang basehan mao ang pagdaog. Magsugod kini sa pag-atiman sa mga manok. Naay matukibon nga paagi sa pagbuhi sa manok nga gihatag kanato sa walay hunong nga pagtuon sa siyensya. Hatagan ta og kalidad nga pagkaon, bitamina, ug igsaktong pag-alima ang manok. Magtuon sab ta sa giingon nga mga anting-anting o dagon sa manok, apil ang pagpangita sa mga senyales sa modaogay nga manok. Kining tanan kabahin lamang sa pag-atiman sa igtatari.

Moila usab kita sa mga sabongero nga walay dalangmanok. Moadto lamang sila sa sabongan aron mopusta. Sa atong pagtanaw sa maayong sabongero pinaagi sa iyang daog, angay usab natong mahibal-an ang ilang paagi sa pagpili sa klarong manok. Sa pagkatinuod, mubo lang ang panahon sa pagpili og manok nga pustahan. Kon dili kaila ang tag-iya, wala nay lain pang paagi sa pagpili sa manok kondili ang hitsura lang ug lihok sa manok. Hunahunaa nga ang pusta linibo! Nn sa klarong sabongero ang kahanas sa pagpili sa modaogay nga manok.

Ang ikatulong timailhan sa maayong sabongero mao ang pagkahayahay sa iyang kinabuhi. Unang makit-an ang hayahay nga sabongero diha mismo sa bulangan. Kon atong tan-awon, naay mga pagbahin sa bulangan. Kining mga pagbahin nagpaila sa kahimtang sa kinabuhi sa mga tawo dinhi. Ang mga adunahan, nga mahimong ilhon sa ilang pustura ug kadako sa ilang pusta, naa sa usa ka lugar. Naay lugar para sa mga dili kaayo adunahan. Naa puy lugar para sa mga pinaka adunahan. Gilahi ang ilang lingkoranan ug mas duol sila sa nagsampokay nga manok.

Klaro sa usa ka sabongero kon kinsa ang maayo o dili maayong sabongero. Apan ang atong pagsabot sa sabong dili mohunong sa pag-ila kon kinsa ang maayong sabongero, kondili magpadayon kita sa pagpangutana: Angay bang ilhon ang maayong sabongero isip maayong tawo?

Para sa usa ka sabongero, maayong tawo ang buotang sabongero. Ilado siya sa bulangan tungod sa iyang pagkamaayo. Apan mao pud ba kini ang panlantaw sa dili sabongero, ilabi na kadtong kontra sa sabong? Bisan pa og klaro na sa sabong kon kinsa ang maayong tawo, dili kini garantiya nga siya ilhon gihapon nga maayong tawo gawas sa bulangan.

Ang mga dili tigsabong tingali mohukom dayon nga daotan ang sabong. Pagkaingon pa lang nga kini sugal ug patay, imoral na dayon ang mosulod sa ilang hunahuna. Apan dili maayo kining paghusga kon wala kitay kasinatian sa sabong. Mao nga ang unang metodolohiya nga atong gamiton mao ang paglikay sa paghusga sa dili pa ta kahibalo sa talagsaong dula nga giila sa mga maayong laki- ang sabong. Ang atong tumong mao ang pag-ila ug paghusga sa sabong gikan sa panlantaw sa nakasabot.

Ang paglikay sa paghusga dihadiha makatabang og dako sa pagsabot sa sabong isip usa ka simpleng dula. Kon atong wad-on sa makadiyot ang atong paghusga sa sabong, atong maaninaw nga ang sabong naay kaugalingong kalibotan.

Nasulti na kaganina nga naay kahan-ay sa lugar mismo sa sabongan. Kiaro ang gikahimutangan sa tanang butang ug maayo ang pagkaplastar sa mga luna. Sayon ra kining ilhon pinaagi sa dagan sa dula. Ang mga sabongero dili lamang naninguha sa ilang nagkadaiyang interes, kondili sa maayong dagan sa dula usab. Ang tanang butang ug pamaagi, gikan sa tigbantay sa ganghaan hangtod sa tigdumala sa sulod sa ruweda, moresulta sa han-ay nga dagan sa dula. Tungod kay atong gipangahas ang pagsabot sa pagkatao sa sabongero, ato na karong ikompara ang rnga elernento nga makadugang paghingpit sa kalibotan sa sabong ug sa katilingban. Mao kini ang ikaduhang metodolohiya nga buot natong gamiton.

Ang Sabongero ug ang Sosyedad

Usa nato ikompara ang duha ka kalibotan, angay natong hinumdoman nga ang mga sabongero naggikan usab sa sosyedad (Geertz 1973). Gikan kang halangdong representante, mayor, negosyante, polis, pari, doktor, maestro, security guard, drayber, trabahante hangtod sa istambay, tigulang o bats, mamahimong interesado sa sabong.

Sa adlaw sa sabong, hinayhinay na silang moadto sa bulangan aron mosugal. Nagkadaiya ang ilang papel sa bulangan: naay tigbantay, kristo, doktor sa manok, masyador, tindera, kahera, tigdumala, ug uban pa. Silang tanan kabahin sa kahan-ay sa dagan sa sabong. Nindot kaayong makita ug mabati ang nagkadaiyang lihok nga angay sa ilang papel. Naay kahan-ay ang kasaba sa sininggitay kon sila makigpusta sa ubang sabongero, sama sa kahan-ay sa kahilom sa pagsampok na sa mga manok. Sa kanunay ilang gipaningkamotan nga makab-ot ang kalinaw ug kahusay.

Human sa sabong, ang tanang sabongero mobalik ra usab sa ilang tagsatagsa ka pamilya dala ang matinud-anong pagbati sa kalipay o kahigwaos. Ug magsugod na usab sila sa ilang normal nga kinabuhi dala ang pangandoy nga makaapil pag-usab sa sunod nga sabong.

Kini nagpaila nga bisan pa nga naay kaugalingong kalibotan ang sabong, ang mga tigsabong miyembro gihapon sa katilingban ug naay dakong bahin sa dagan niini. Dili sila angay baliwalaon tungod kay dili mahimong ibaliwala ang ilang kontribusyon sa katilingban. Duyog niining huna-huna, mahimo na natong ikompara ang duha ka kalibotan.

Una natong tan-awon ang hulagway. Atong balikon ang pipila ka punto nga atong gibutyag kaganina: ang mga sabongero gikan sa nagkadaiyang propesyon; naa silay tagsatagsa ka papel sa sabongan; naay mga tigdumala anon mapatuman ang kahan-ay sa dagan sa dula; ang ruweda mao ang sentro sa sabongan; naay ginagrnay nga transaksyon tab sa tagsatagsa ka sabongero ug naa usay transaksyon nga nakasentro sa ruweda.

Atong makita ang kalambigitan sa sabong ug sosyedad. Pareho silang adunay mg-a tawong gikan sa lainlaing propesyon. Ang tagsatagsa kanila adunay bahin sa katilingban. Naay sentro nga panggobyernong nagdumala sa pagpatuman sa malinawong dagan sa katilingban. Apan dili tanang transaksyon mahimong mapatuman sa ginagmay nga panagsabot. Kasagaran naay sentralisadong ahensya sa gobyemo anon rnoatiman niining mga transaksyon sa katilingban. Kon dili kini sentralisado, posibleng mahimong gubot ang dagan sa sistema.

Ang tanang tawo sa bulangan sabongero. Naa sila diha anon magsabong Busa naay klarong dagan sa dula tungod kay dihang lugara ug kanang panahona, usa ra ang dagan sa ilang pangutok: ang han-ay nga dula sa sabong. Kon naay panagbingkil, ang sentro maoy manguna sa pagsulbad niini. Alegre hunahunaon kay walay sinulat nga balaod nga gipugos nga ipatuman sa mga sabongero. Walay diksyunaryo nga nagpatas sa ilang mga lingguahe o sinyales, ug walay matukibong pagtuon sa mga utokan mahitungod sa sabong. Apan sa dugay nga panahon, nagpabiling klaro ang dagan sa sabong.

Mahimo ba natong ingnon nga ang sabong hulagway sa katilingban? Sa mga punto nga atong gihisgotan mahimo natong ikompara ang sabong ug katilingban. Nagbangi ba ang realidad sa sabong ug realidad sa katilingban? Sa katapusan, basin atong masakpan nga ang sosyedad usa diay ka sabong.

Mga Apan sa Sabong

Dili kita magpaka-aron-ingnon nga wala kita masayod sa mga apan sa sabong ug ang epekto niini sa pamilya, pakigrelasyon sa uban, ug sa kinatibuk-ang dagan sa sosyedad. Kini nga panlantaw naggikan sa panlantaw sa nakasabot sa sabong. Iota nahibalo nga ang tinud-anay nga pagpilosopiya dili molimod sa ubang kahibalo anon mapaabot ang gustong ipaabot, kondili ang pagpalambo sa tanang mga kahibalo.

Dinhi sa ikaduhang bahin sa atong pagpilosopiya, atong paminawon ang mga rason sa mga tawong mosulti nga walay maayo sa sabong ug nga ang tanang sabongero walay klaro. Tulo sa daghang rason ang atong hisgotan.

Ang sabong klaro nga sugal. Sa sugal gihimong transaksyon ang kwarta, butan& binuhing mananap, hasty ang balay ug yuta. Niining sugala tub ang daog, pildi, ug tabla. Maayo kon modaog. Mahimong hayahay ang imong kinabuhi. Mahimo kang dato, ug mahimong ikapasigarbo ang imong mga kabtangan. Apan ang posibilidad nga modaog sarna kadako sa posibilidad nga mapildi. Mahurot ang kwarta ug kabtangan, mahimo usab nga malubong sa utang. Dugang pa niana ang walay klarong makaon, dili makaiskwela ang anak, away sa asawa, ug kainit sa ulo.

Ang sabong away sa manok. Ang manok nga gialima sa dugay nga panahon, gigastohan og dako, gipangga ug giamoma – usahay labaw pa sa pag-amoma sa asawa. Apan sa kalit lang, diha sa away, kini magkadugo ug mamatay. Nagpasabot kini nga ang sabong klaro nga panamastamas ug pamintas sa manok. Daghang hilisgotan ang kinahanglan tubagon kon nganong patyon ang manok sa lingaw-lingaw.

Ang sabong usa ka pagsimang. Imbis nga ang tawo mahimong kritikal sa mga panghitabo sa sosyedad, ang sabongero nabuta sa lingaw sa sabong Wala nay interes moapil sa katilingbang pagbag-o tungod kay nalingaw naman sa sabong! Giingon pa nga ang sabongan, uban sa mga sabongero, usa ka laing kalibotan. Kompbto ang kinabuhing sabongero kon makaadto lang sa sabongan bisag kausa sa usa ka semana. Apan sa tinuod usa lang ang atong kalibotan.

Kinahanglan tang mabuhi kauban ang tanan. Pero dili kini ang kasinatian sa usa ka sabongero. IvIalipayon siyang lingawon ang iyang kaugalingon didto sa sabongan dala ang paglimot sa panginahanglan sa kaugalingong asawa ug mga anak. Mao kini nga ang sabong “klaro” nga pagsimang sa atong pagmatngon.

Dali rang ingnon nga kining atong gisulti mao ang pagkontra sa sabong. Apan atong ipaklaro nga kini mga panlantaw lamang. Lahi ang mga panlantaw sa mga sabongero; sama ra usab kalahi sa panlantaw sa dili sabongero. Ang pagpilosopiya mao ang pagtapok sa nagkadaiyang panlantaw aron mahimo kining mapuslanon sa atong pagtuon ug pagtuki sa realidad sa katilingban.

Sa nobela ni Jose Rizal, gisaway niya ang sabong isip “usa sa mga bisyo sa katawhan, sobra pa kakaylap kaysa opyo sa mga Insik.” Klaro nga aduna poy dugang nga kinahanglan makat-onan si Rizal.

Celebrating the Power of the Displaced (Or, how the displaced created and re-created communities in the conflict areas of Mindanao)

Claiming that displaced persons are in possession of power may be viewed as naive and presumptuous. I invite you, however, to a reflection on the discourse of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) as I offer a description of repeated forced migrations, and on the persistence of displaced communities in creating and recreating
their communities through the years of continuing armed conflicts in Mindanao. In the process, I will take a critical assessment of the horrendous cost of the armed conflicts and its resulting displacements without losing sight of the historical capacity of displaced communities to deal with their condition.
To start with, this paper will tackle the discourse of the bakwits, the Mindanao Idiom closely resembling the IDP category. I will comment on some views that project the bakwits as if they are people without history by following the 32-year experience of repeated evacuations, returns, and rebuilding of the bakwits from Buliok and its surrounding communities in Central Mindanao.
The paper will also take a glimpse of new movements undertaken by displaced persons, such as the establishment of “space for peace,” mass mobilizations that unleashed the “bakwit power,” and the bakwit’s involvement in the monitoring of ceasefire agreements signed by armed groups. Finally the paper argues for  a re-understanding of the dominant images of the bakwits, and suggest the idea of solidarity  over aid and the possibilities of harnessing the power of the displaced in peace advocacy. I highlight the capacities of the displaced in recording their lives as an integral component in understanding the patterns of displacements and in the discussion of security issues. These capacities are often undermined, ignored, and forgotten from the time aid groups start with the distribution of first bags of relief goods to the design and construction of houses an community facilities.

I. The Bakwits
In many areas of Mindanao, IDP takes the idiom “bakwit,” a; category for persons displaced by calamities and armed conflicts. The, bakwit, as pronounced by different linguistic background, appropriates  the English verb “evacuate.” Dictionaries of Philippine dialects note that the term bakwit (with spelling variations bakwit and bakwit) refers, to “evacuees, refugees” (Sullivan 1986, 76; Almario 2001, 81) and is used both as a verb and a noun. The term bakwit does not distinguish an IDP from the refugees defined in the 1951 Refugee Convention and the United Nations Guidelines on Internally Displaced Persons (UNGPID). For this paper, I take the bakwit in reference to persons displaced by calamities and armed conflicts in Mindanao.

I frame this paper in the context of the armed conflicts and’ displacements over a thirty-year period as viewed by the bakwits, civil society and aid groups, and some of the war’s protagonists including members of government-backed paramilitary forces, former members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), Army field commanders and some leaders of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), and 4 the literatures on the “Mindanao conflict.” The bakwits shared with 1, me their stories and photographs, their pains and joys in the course of I my seven-month fieldwork for an ethnography of the bakwits in certain evacuation sites and villages in the provinces of Maguindanao and North Cotabato.

As If A People Without History

Government and civil society literatures refer to the bakwits as people “denied of their rights to make choices and decisions for themselves and their community” due to the “recurring patterns of violence, deprivation and coercion” (Mindanao Peoples Caucus brochure). Some studies conclude that the displaced are “poor and uneducated” and that their “living conditions had further worsened and rendered dim their prospects of achieving better futures or, at least, regaining the kind of life and the pride and self-respect they used to have” (Notre Dame University with the Commission on Population January 2004, 54).

To address the bakwit situation, calls were issued for “human rights defenders, service providers, peace advocates, and the stakeholders themselves to take the main role in reclaiming the rights and dignity of the IDPs” (BALAY Primer on UNGPID), by “empowering communities through capacity building” (Tabang Mindanaw or Help Mindanao brochure; National Anti-Poverty Commission 2003 Report, 19-26; MEDCO, ARMM, UNDP, EC, September 2004).

Descriptions of the patterns of displacements in Mindanao tend to focus on forced migration events surrounding the major armed confrontations between the government and Morn rebel forces in 2000 and 2003, and were limited to the implications on women and children, needs assessments, governance and better means of conducting aid, rehabilitation, peace and development programs (Notre Dame University with the Commission on Population 2004; Daguino, Kamlian, et al. 2004, 3; Oxfam Great Britain November 2000; Accion Contra el Hambre June 2004). These assessments offer a generalized description of displacement patterns that highlight the helplessness of the displaced, the necessity of continued assistance, their crossing the threshold of food insecurity and on to an even bleaker future, as if the bakwits are a people without history.

II. Evacuations, Returns, and Rebuildings
Movements and Persistence

I believe that it is meaningful to view the patterns of displacements within the thirty-year time frame, and not to be limited to the bakwits’ situation and movements in the wars of 2000 and 2003. I also take note of the cultural diversity and complexities of Mindanao’s eighteen million people who are organized, but not exclusively, along ethno-linguistic, political, and even class lines.

In understanding displacement patterns, I keep track of the events when communities evacuate and the sites where they evacuated, the period when they start the process of returning and rebuilding their villages, and the time they are displaced again. Experiences of evacuations, returns and rebuildings are not limited to stories of helplessness and sufferings but are also about persistence and capabilities.

Evacuations

For this paper, evacuation means the time communities are displaced when residents migrate elsewhere to avoid being caught in the war. Being “caught in the war” has two meanings for some of the bakwits in Central Mindanao. First, it means exposing oneself or family to danger, and second, it means the mobilization of an individual, families, and clans to join the fighting. During the evacuation period, not all displaced families run far away from their villages and farms. Some stay and hide along river banks, forested areas, behind tall grasses or in dry portions of the swamps, as in the case of the experiences of the villagers across the Liguasan Marsh.4 In recent armed confrontations, particularly in 1997, 2000, and 2003, most displaced residents would flee to evacuation centers or camps.
Returns

I also distinguish returns from rebuildings because the bakwits go through distinct experiences in both events. They keep watch, especially of patrolling soldiers, and take the first opportunity of returning to their farms or fishing grounds at the marsh and rivers once the soldiers withdraw. After working their farms, fishing, or scouring for food from the field, they return to their refuge. The bakwits in the evacuation camps at times venture to their farms for a day or a few days. In the process of return, the bakwits do not immediately re-occupy the lands where their houses and farms used to be. Returning families group together in certain areas where they build temporary shelters even as they work their farms, either collectively or individually. In other cases, only the men return to the village to farm while the women, children, and the elderly stay in the evacuation sites. The reason for these arrangements is that they do not feel secure during the first few months of return when government soldiers continue to conduct patrol operations and are deployed near or within their farmlands. They know that after every battle, rebel forces would simply break into smaller groups but often stay near the village. These villages are also the homes of some of the rebels the government have been fighting with. Some of these rebels are the sons, husbands, brothers, in-laws, and cousins of the displaced. Civilians think that chances of getting caught in the crossfire are high because the warring forces are in their village.

Rebuildings

Rebuilding refers to the period when displaced communities start re-establishing or have already completed reconstruction of structures, materials resources, common and individual facilities, houses, and farms. Rebuilding, however, does not necessarily mean the return of all the bakwits. Some stay away from their original village for some time. Others return home periodically to farm and tend to other properties like farm animals and tools. I associate rebuilding to that period when the communities start the designing and the reconstruction of community resources and facilities like schools, houses, places of worship, traditional communal and multi-purpose halls, health centers, the continuation of planting cycles and abundance of harvest, purchase of farm tools, holding of elections, observance of rituals, the practice of worship, gathering of families and of the community, holding weddings, celebration of births, beautification of abandoned and bombed out burial ground, and the functioning of everyday life.

I think these criteria I set forth echo suggestions in setting the “bare minimum” of human capabilities so we can say clearly “what would be a humanly good way of countering limitation” (Nussbaum 1995, 80). Nussbaum offered a working list that evaluates human capabilities that includes perceiving, imagining, thinking, humor, sex, having intimate family, personal, and social relations, being imaginative, emotional and intellectual.

I checked these capabilities from the experience of the evacuees from Buliok and I find them amazingly animated. The narratives I am presenting were told to me by Buliok residents, who are still in the evacuation centers, have already returned to their village, or have gone elsewhere. Some of those who went not far away from their places of origin continue to tend their farms.
The Buliok Experience

In police and military parlance, Buliok is known as “Buliok Complex,” apparently intended to highlight the area’s strategic value as a military target. The law MILF chair Salamat Hashim established a base n this sprawling village after their headquarters based in the hinterlands Matanog town in Maguindanao fell during government offensives in 2000. For Buliok residents, their village is a barangay, the smallest and territorial unit of the Philippine government. Before the war in. and 2003, Buliok had schools, farms, mosques, government halls, health centers, and a population of 4,260 persons who thrived  farming and fishing. It was not the only time Buliok was attacked, community and other residents from adjacent areas had gone t terrifying experiences of repeated armed conflicts since 1972.

Based on the narratives of Buliok, I trace the process of displa return, and rebuilding (see table below). I re-appropriate their s in terms of lines and curves. The diagonal lines represent the p of displacement, broken lines signify the bakwits’ efforts in re to their villages, and the solid lines highlight the displaced p initiatives in rebuilding their communities.

A quick glance at the table suggests that Buliok villagers through at least two long term displacements in 1972 and late 1974. they began returning in early 1974, fresh fighting erupted, result a six-year displacement between 1975 to 1981. Buliok bakwits st returning in the second half of 1981 and rebuilt their communities. until they were displaced again eight years later, in 1989. The bakwits started returning in 1991 and went on rebuilding their community until displaced again around the summer of 1997. The bakwits returned end of 1997 but were displaced again during the 2000 war. By the third quarter of 2000, a stream of evacuees gradually returned to Buliok only to be displaced in February 2003. In December 2003, the bakwits started returning up until the time this paper is being written.

The persistence of the Buliok community in returning and rebuilding is worth highlighting because their experience signifies the capabilities of the community that refuses to remain victims or be broken by displacements.
Buliok Before the Displacements

Menandang Mamolindas, 36 years old, a village councilor in the predominantly Muslim community of Buliok and chair of the bakwits association called Suara Kalilintad in Pikit and Pagalungan towns, recalls that before the 1972 displacements, Buliok was a thriving, self-sustaining community complete with three rice mills, several corn milling equipment, large houses with okir designs and high roofed houses on stilts, a madrasah, three mosques, wide swaths of tobacco, coconut, rice, and corn farms, fleet of motorized and non-motorized boats for fishing and transporting of farm produce to Cotabato City, fertile farmlands, and rows of stores. “A Story of Barangay Buliok” which Menandang wrote by long hand describes their place in the decade of 1960 to 1970 as masagana (abundant) because they had “several sources of income” (Mamolindas 2004).
Evacuations. 1972

Menandang wrote, that with the occurrence of communal violence in many parts of Cotabato in the early 1970s, cases of criminality in their community also went up and that their village was in turmoil following the formation of the fanatical, armed anti-Muslim group called Ilaga. The residents of Buliok and the surrounding communities actually prepared for the Raga attack by organizing and arming their men. In other accounts, the armed Maguindanawons were known as the Blackshirts and Barracuda who were reportedly linked to Maguindanao and Meranao politicians (McKenna 1998, 153, Che Man 1990, 75). For Menandang, they were defending their land as members of the community and of their clans. Armed members of the community and clans later re-organized and were transformed into nation revolutionaries with the formation of the MNLF (Jubair 1999, 148-1 As the MNLF gathered strength, government responded by dept massive troops, equipment and launching artillery and aerial attack The combined military firepower caused the large-scale displacement in the 1970s and in subsequent decades.
Classifying  bombs

Menandang’s neighbors says that Buliok, its surrounding village and the marshes were pounded by artillery from army bases and bombs dropped by helicopters, Tora-tora aircraft, and later, by OV-10 bombs  aircraft. The bombings were so intense that they developed idiom for the different bombs based on the size of the craters caused by bomb. A bomb crater big enough for a person to fit in is a “cutting bomb.” A bomb leaving a crater that fits a six-wheeler truck is called the “national bomb” while one that leaves a crater bigger than that left by a”national bomb” is referred to as an “international bomb.” The bombs and operations from ground troops destroyed t village. The residents fled to various parts of the vast Liguasan M During their stay in the marsh, they would fish and cook at night ensure that the soldiers and the planes would not see the smoke from fire and attack them. They heard that in some areas of the marsh, whelk families were bombed and wiped out for making the mistake of cook’ at daytime. There were no aid agencies or civil society extending he They relied on one another and the clan structures while in the marsh.
Trading and Feasting in Evacuation Sites

When the military aerial and pursuit operations stopped after a f* months, the bakwits tried farming the dry fertile lands of the mat or fishing in its waterways and swamps. A few members of the fa would slip through soldiers and paramilitary forces covering the points from the marsh and then sell their fish catch and harvest to II markets in Pikit or Cotabato City.

A few months after the displacements, traders, several of whom Christians and ethnic Chinese from Cotabato City, Pikit, and other a sailed to the marshlands peddling merchandise like biscuits, c a nThe4 goods, clothes, veils, kerosene gas, kitchen wares, blades for farmingand other basic household amenities. The traders, in turn, purchased the bakwits’ farm products and fish catch, and sold them back to Pikit or Cotabato City_. Life was not as easy compared to their life in Buliok before the war but they managed to hold kanduli or celebrations for weddings, births, remembering the dead, important Islamic rites, and other cultural events. They even managed to wear their best clothes in special rites while in the marsh. Clothes are among the priority items they carry during the evacuation.
Return, 1974 and Displacement, 1976

As the conflicts subsided, a few bakwits returned to their village around 1974 to work on their farms. Two years later, they fled again.9 Military ground assaults and aerial bombings continued, forcing families to break up and scatter across the Liguasan Marsh. Evacuees I interviewed claimed a significant level of civilian casualties in the massive air raids in 1978 and 1979. The bakwits thought the marsh was impenetrable from ground attacks but that belief was shattered with the landing of hundreds of soldiers in Dalgan and its surroundings in 1979. The bakwits abandoned the marsh and sought refuge in town centers.

Menandang slipped out of the Liguasan Marsh before the air strikes. He said some MNLF guerrilla leaders who are his relatives but who defected to the government warned him and other clan members of a planned massive air attack. He heeded the warning but other clan members and neighbors did not. They remained in the marsh for fear of a harsher life in the town center. Menandang and his family fled to Pikit but he kept a low profile doing menial jobs because some of his relatives who were former local MNLF commanders turned government military field officers suspected him of being with the rebels.
Return, 1981

When the guns fell silent in late 1981, a few displaced families returned to Buliok, They returned with guarded optimism, building huts close to one another. In each hut, two or three families lived together to ensure that everybody was within reach and could easily be warned in case they had to run. After a few more months without ground attacks and bombardments, the families started dispersing and rebuilding sturdier homes. Around 1983, the community was again teeming with life. They built two mosques and gradually acquired f animals, tools, and fishing equipment. Later on, they rebuilt one of three rice mills destroyed in the 1970s.

Evacuations, 1990

All these, however, were destroyed six years later when another engulfed their village. Buliok villagers stayed away, returning only around 1991. They started rebuilding about two years later in 1993. They set-more stable houses, re-cultivated their abandoned tobacco, corn and lands, installed corn mills, and purchased motorboats. As a barangay the community managed to press the government to construct public elementary and high schools, village halls, and other facilities. All these, however, went to naught in 1997 when military attack targeted Rajah Muda village in Pikit, a short three kilometers from Buliok. Government soldiers announced that the attack was meant “flush out” kidnap-for-ransom gangs and criminal to have slipped into Rajah Muda. Artillery and aerial bombings a groups report fighting spread towards the Liguasan Marsh, forcing Buliok resident and other villages in Pikit and Pagalungan to flee. From

Marsh to Camps

The 1997 displacements marked a shift in the destinations of t bakwits. By this time, more evacuees sought refuge in elementary school the madrasah, mahad, gymnasium, warehouses, plaza, old cinema house and other parts of the central part of Pikit town. At least 30,000 family I evacuated to Pikit at that time (MindaNews video documentary). In the town center, aid from government, humanitarian institutions, churches, Islamic associations, and civil society groups poured in. To access the bakwits signed survey sheets prepared by aid agencies and waiting for the process of verification attesting that they were, indeed, evacuees Upon verification, they were given coupons required to be shown aid workers distributing relief goods. These goods usually include fi to ten kilos of rice, cans of sardines, noodles, soap, detergent bars, a other household needs, among others.

Samira Usman, a twenty-seven year old evacuee from a village called Kudal near Buliok, said never had she felt so humiliated as when she lined up for food from aid agencies. Though life was more difficult in their evacuation sites in the Liguasan Marsh and other safer fields in Pikit and Pagalungan towns, they were not made to line up for relief goods.

Imaging the “Helpless” Bakwits

The images of the bakwits helplessly lining up for aid with hands stretching out for food, eves in tears, staring aimlessly at nothingness, and their children wearing torn clothes and holding empty tin plates are beamed on television news and splashed across the pages of the newspapers. I think these images of helplessness set the discourse of the bakwits as a people who do not know their rights, are poor, uneducated, powerless, and in need of continuing assistance and lectures on livelihood and empowerment.

When the tensions in Rajah Muda eased, residents started returning around 1998 and went back to farming and producing goods, a reality that is far from the images frozen by television and newspaper photographs at one point of their lives as bakwits. Two years later, the chance of rebuilding dissipated because Buliok residents fled again when then President Joseph Estrada launched an “all-out-war” against the MILF in the summer of 2000.

The MILF’s main base in the hinterlands of Matanog, Maguindanao Province fell following massive air strikes and military assaults. Mosques, houses. stores, schools, and communities were destroyed. The war expanded to the provinces of Lanao del Sur. Lanao del None, Bukidnon, Sultan Kudarat, Zamboanga del Sur, and North Cotabato. Government placed the number of displaced persons at between seven hundred thousand and one million persons (Notre Dame University with the Commission on Population 2004, 9).

The Problem with Aid

Aid agencies, civil society members, churches, and other groups loured relief goods to Pikit, Pagalungan, and other conflict-affected areas, but sometimes relief distribution created conflicts.Some aid agencies claim that non-bakwits or people who were not displaced took advantage of relief goods by signing up among the displaced.

Some evacuees also listed their children’s names so they could get more food aid. Other evacuees sold their supplies and certain traditional :enders kept the relief goods in their homes.

Samira says the aid agencies do not know the whole story. She says that while some of those who had their names listed for relief were not evacuees of the 2000 war, they were the bakwits of earlier wars who failed to return home and had difficulty surmounting economic difficulties. Evacuees who listed the names of their children and even long dead relatives did so because they were not certain when the next supplies would be coming. Some sold their aid goods because they found the items less needed. They used the money to purchase what they felt was more needed or what they preferred. For instance, a relief agency distributed mongo beans thinking that it is a good source of protein but some evacuees especially those suffering from arthritis would not eat them believing that these have high uric acid content and could trigger chemical reactions that could cause more body pains. The money they earned from selling the beans were used to buy fish, still a source of protein that better suits their taste and health. Certain traditional leaders in host communities demanded a share of relief goods because that has been the practice in the area.

The problem with aid in the context of Samira’s story is that it does not match the displaced community’s expectations. Aid agencies rise above the “helpless bakwits” who are at the receiving end of “humanitarian assistance.” Aid agencies take the vantage position of power as they tend to set the ethics and morality of receiving aid. They frown on people who list more names to get more aid, scoff at traditional leaders who demand a share of relief goods, and decide who qualify to be bakwits on the basis of the year they were displaced. In certain situations, like in Samira’s story, the issue is not the ethics and morality of claiming aid, but an understanding and appreciation of the complexities and problems of life in refugee camps, or in evacuation centers as they are known in Mindanao.
Life in Evacuation Centers

Most of the refugees lived in cramped blue plastic tents that became oven-hot in the morning to mid-afternoon. The poor layout and facilities of the camp added to the desperation of the evacuees and made them look, feel, and think helpless. The camps are also fields of contestations and of power centers. Since the camps are set up in lands claimed by traditional clan and community leaders of host communities, the evacuees have to bow to the rules that the leader set, like the practice of sharing goods, be it relief, trade products, or government resources.

Other evacuees refused to be overwhelmed by desperation. Samira and her husband purchased the parcel of the land they had been occupying, using the money saved from their last harvest. Some fifty other families also brought parcel of lands adjacent to the lot bought by Samira and her husband. They raised the money from the sale of their harvest, loans, and support sent by their children working as domestic helpers abroad. Others set up cooling stations near the town hall selling snacks, drinks, and lunch to police personnel and town hall employees. There were evacuees who worked as hired hands and did other menial jobs. Still, many of the evacuees returned to their farms, braving the dangers of getting caught in the crossfire between warring government and rebel forces.

Displaced persons in other evacuation centers also had more to share than stories of sufferings and deprivations. To celebrate the breaking of the fast in the Holy Month of the Ramadan in November 2001, a family of Muslim bakwits in one of Pikit’s evacuation centers managed to share probably the last of what they had with a Catholic priest who has been their friend and ally in the endless cycle of war and peace. The priest, Roberto Layson of the Pikit Parish, was humbled by the encounter and thought of the bakwits’ action as an expression of “human greatness” and “capability” despite being caught in an extremely difficult situation. He writes in his reflection:

As I started eating, I could hardly swallow the food. I looked at the sardines and the rice before me. It gave me a feeling of guilt. ‘This could have been another meal for the family,’ I kept telling myself. I felt ashamed because here I was inside the tent, with my bloated Christian ego, feeling great for being the famous Fr. Bert, the priest in town who gives rice. Until the evacuees inside the tent showed me what was real greatness.

I thought that because the evacuees were starving they would keep everything for themselves, and be no longer capable of showing generosity to fellow human beings like me. I was terribly wrong. I underestimated the evacuees because I overestimated myself.

The evacuees inside the tent showed me that they were, in fact, larger than themselves, that they were more real than what I think I am.

While I shared from the abundance of what I have, they shared from the little of what they have and gave probably the last food left in their possession (Layson 2004).

 The Continuing Saga of Evacuations, Returns, Evacuations and Returns

When President Estrada was ousted in January 2001, a ceasefire Was called by his successor, President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Government and MILF peace negotiations resumed with the aim of rehabilitating war-affected areas.10 Buliok residents started the process of return in late 2001. This time, however, MILF chair Salamat Hashim transferred his base to Buliok. Buliok residents claimed they were aware of the MILF presence but they continued to go about their everyday life knowing that some of their relatives are also members of the MILF. Buliok residents trace common descent with Hashim as a Bagoingeden, a cultural and inter-clan grouping within the Maguindanao ethnolinguistic group occupying Buliok and its surrounding areas.

Three years after the 2000 conflicts, another war dispersed the residents of Buliok. But even before the government assault, several residents had started fleeing Buliok. The signs of an impending war were evident with the continued arrival of military troops and equipment in Pikit. Local government officials also advised Buliok residents, most of them their relatives, to leave. The defense department claimed that the campaign targeted “terrorists” who reportedly slipped into Buliok.

On 11 February 2003, a few civilians, including women and children, remained in Buliok thinking that the soldiers would not attack on sacred day of the Eid’l Adha, one of the holiest rites in the Islamic religion. Mike Luay, a Buliok resident, tells me that a few civilians 3nri MILF religious and fighters were gathered in and around a mosque reciting the Al Fatiha, the opening words in the Holy Q’uran, when the first volley of artillery fires hit parts of Buliok. The community fell and houses were leveled. Soldiers captured and took over the MIL F’s Islamic Center. As the military scored points, the social cost of -he war was staggering. Records from the Department of Social Welfare try. and Development (DSWD) noted that the number of the bakwits  reached 411,004 (MindaNews, November 2003). Those in Pikit wire distributed in sixty-five evacuation centers (Notre Dame University a lei Commission on Population 2004, 9).

The first of the bakwits returned in about four months, in ju 2003. In October 2004, more evacuees returned to Buliok followi 11.; the pull-out of military forces from the Islamic Center and several oth et farmlands in the area. Thus continued the saga of evacuations, returns, and hopeful rebuildings.
III. New Bakwit Movements
Since the war in 2000, the evacuees in Buliok as well as in other parts of Central Mindanao have adopted new strategies and explored other fields of movements instead of confining their places of refuge in the Liguasan Marsh and its surrounding areas. These fields included asserting a “space” within their community that would be spared from any hostility by all warring groups, and networking with peace advocacy groups who can lobby right at the seat of government power in Metro Manila and before the Central Committee of the MILF.
The Space for Peace

In another part of Pikit town, multi-ethnic villagers of Nalapaan partnered with aid and church groups to set up delegations who communicated with the leadership of the military and the MILF to respect their places as off limits to armed encounters. Nalapaan residents in the village also went through the endless cycle of evacuation, return, and rebuilding every time bombing raids and armed encounters flare up in Buliok and surrounding areas. The village is a strategic point for both the military and the rebels.12 On 1 February 2001, Nalapaan residents declared their village a “space for peace.” Government forces, 1+.1I1,F, local and provincial government officials, and civil society groups committed support to the declaration. The following year, residents of the adjacent village of Panicupan also followed and worked for the declaration of their place as space for peace. The declarations were tested at the height of the Buliok attack in February 2003. MILF and military forces entered the villages the villages of Nalapaan and Panicupan at the time of the fighting. Villagers abandoned their homes but re-grouped and stayed put in a space within the “space for peace” instead of fleeing to the evacuation sites at the Pikit town center several kilometers away. Village leaders and church groups supporting the declaration in 2001 and 2002 reminded the government and MILF leadership of their commitment to respect the spaces for peace. The military and the MILF subsequently avoided engaging each other in the space for peace areas.

The space for peace is for all concerned — the bakwits, village officials, civil society groups, local government, and the military and rebels — to respect each other’s positions, views, ideologies, and including the decision to bear arms. But each one will try to reach out and dialogue about security concerns and issues in the community.

Staff and volunteers including Muslims affiliated with the Roman Catholic’s Immaculate Conception Parish in Pikit worked closely with the Nalapaan residents in building the space for peace. At the slightest sign of misunderstanding between neighbors, residents and the Pikit parish staff worked together to figure out the roots of the conflict and tap existing conflict resolution mechanisms in the community to deal with the issues. Through the space for peace, the residents and the parish staff collectively accessed from government and aid agencies the entitlements due the evacuees. Implementation of these interventions was managed as components of peace-building programs. The building of community facilities like tube wells, multipurpose halls and even the distribution of houses and farm inputs were harnessed by the residents as opportunities in healing the divisions wrought by repeated wars. These intervention projects, if not managed along peace and relationship building lines, can sow more divisions and animosities in the community and complicate peace efforts.

After the 2003 war, in partnership with the Pikit parish staff and other civil society groups, residents and officials from five other villages in Pikit began working for the inclusion of their areas in the “spaces for peace,” effectively expanding the space off limits to war from two to seven villages. Government and MILF forces have extended their commitment to respect these areas as spaces for peace. On 29 November, residents, village officials and their partners in civil society celebrated the declaration of all seven villages as an expanded space for peace. They invited representatives from both government and the MILF, the Malaysian-led international ceasefire monitoring team, and other groups and community leaders from across Mindanao to celebrate with them.

Significantly, contributing to the success of the space for peace is the dynamic composition of the staff in the Pikit parish. They understood fully well the dynamics of evacuations and the capacities of the bakwits. One factor for such a nuanced understanding of the evacuation experience is that they are residents in the area and that many of them also went through the difficult saga of evacuations, returns, and rebuildings.
Harnessing the Power of the Bakwits

Popular support for the war in February 2003 prompted some groups in civil society to soul search and even question if peace advocacy in Mindanao really has constituents. Members of the Mindanao People’s Caucus (MPC), a multi-cultural peace advocacy group, thought of holding consultations and asking the evacuees in Pikit and Pagalungan of their view of the war, and of possibly mobilizing them in demanding from both the government and the MILF to observe their ceasefire agreements.

In late May 2003, several evacuees and MPC volunteers gathered in a school in Pagalungan not to line up for food but to discuss what they can do about the war. In the end, the group decided that they would organize a rally and indefinitely block the national highway in Pagalungan that connects the cities of Davao and Cotabato, two major and strategic urban centers in Mindanao, until the government and the MILF heed their demands for a ceasefire. Some members of the MPC agreed to the holding of a mass action but opposed the blocking of the highway fearing that such move will provoke government authorities and that the situation could turn even more bloody. The plan was debated. They finally agreed not to block the highway but continue with two days of mass actions.
Unleashing the Bakwit Power

On 24 June 2003, an estimated 7,000 evacuees formed a kilometer-long line stretching from the Pikit town center to Pagalungan along the national highway. The evacuees carried signboards and streamers proclaiming “Ceasefire Now!” and the symbolic name of the event: “Bakwit Power.”

The bakwits, joined by civil society groups, did unleash their power as they attracted government and rebel attention. Secretary Teresita Deles, a member of the cabinet then heading the National Anti-Poverty Commission, was sent by President Macapagal Arroyo to Pagalungan and spoke before the gathering of bakwits and civil society groups at the town plaza. Deles read aloud the Bakwit Power manifesto and assured the residents that the government would work on their demands.

Following the Bakwit Power,’ the bakwits and some of civil society staff met again and reflected on their next move. They decided to organize an association that will continue the spirit of the Bakwit Power. They named the group Suara Kalilintad or Voice of Peace. Suara Kalilintad is steered by a “Board of Directors” and an executive committee composed of bakwits. They partnered with civil society groups working in Pikit and Pagalungan for the construction of twenty houses for returning evacuees. The MPC raised the funds by holding a peace concert in relatively more affluent Davao City and by soliciting from other civil society groups. Suara Kalilintad, as of this time, faces challenges from , within its leadership. The board of directors disagreed with the way some of their projects were implemented. Others raised issues of lack of transparency in identifying beneficiaries of their projects.

Bantay Ceasefire: Winning the Peace

While the Suara directors are in disagreement on some issues, they continue to work together in a formation called the Bantay Ceasefire, a civil society-led ceasefire monitor organized in October 2001, with networks from among peace advocates in various parts of Mindanao and in Metro Manila, the media, the academe, churches, and evacuees in the evacuation camps or those who have already returned to their village.

The joint ceasefire committees of the government and MILF peace panels acknowledged the critical and effective role of Bantay Ceasefire in independently monitoring the implementation of the ceasefire accords.” Recently, the evacuees in the Bantay Ceasefire network played a critical role calling immediate public attention to prevent an armed conflict. In March 2004, returning evacuees in Buliok were alarmed by the movements of the MILF and government troops. An evacuee who is also a Bantay Ceasefire member sent an SMS from a mobile phone describing government troops and MILF movements and the fresh wave of evacuations in early March. The evacuee noted in the message that the soldiers and MILF guerrillas were within shooting distance from each other and that a slightest provocation could lead to a gun battle and ultimately into a war.

The Bantay Ceasefire coordinator who is based in Davao City received the bakwit’s message in his mobile .phone and immediately alerted the Government-MILF ceasefire committees, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process, military commanders, and the Bantay Ceasefire network of the situation on the ground. The information went through and down the military and MILF chains of command which restrained their forces on the field. The joint ceasefire committee also visited Buliok and adjacent villages and learned that the MILF’s movements were due to a miscommunication over a date of a meeting with the visiting Advance Survey Team of the Malaysian-led International Monitoring Team on the ceasefire accords. The Malaysian team met with MILF forces in Buliok on 28 March 2004.

Here, we see the mobile phone as a useful tool in monitoring the ceasefire and displacement events before and as they happen. The mobile phone is also effective in alerting the public regarding guerrilla and government troop movements. The alert was relayed to the military and MILF chains of command that, in turn, called the field commanders to exercise restraint and defuse the tense situation.

Evacuees from Buliok and nearby villages are at present representing the Bantay Ceasefire in the joint ceasefire monitoring outpost established by the Government-MILF ceasefire committees in the village of Bagoinged in Pikit and the Islamic Center in Buliok. The outposts were designed by joint ceasefire committees to effectively monitor conflicts in strife-torn areas.

At the outpost, the evacuees find themselves on equal ground with the foot soldiers of both the government and the MILF. They eat, share stories, talk about dreams, and trade jokes with members of the army and MILF guerrillas at the outpost, instead of running away from them-

IV. Solidarity

The experience of the bakwits in Buliok and other parts of Pikit, when seen in a time continuum, is not all about desperation, helplessness, and victimization. A good part of it is about persistence as shown by the dignified way with which they conducted themselves in the course of the different evacuations and in engaging other spheres of movements such as the Bantay Ceasefire and the Spaces for Peace. I think these are significant indications of human agency, unlike the generalized description of the displaced as people who went through a “transition from independence to being dependent on government,

NGOs, or individuals” and of being overwhelmed with feeling:; of “fear, hopelessness, lack of power, and anger” (CFSI June 2003, 5).
Re-understanding the Bakwit Image 

Viewing the bakwits from a narrow frame of displaced people fleeing from wars with heavy loads on their way to cramped evacuation centers may have shaped the assessment of the “helpless bakwits.” Because of the discourse of the bakwit as weak and vulnerable, some aid agencies asked them their needs through needs assessment studies, facilitated their return to their communities, provided them the “foundation for peace building and sustainable development,” offered them training to increase individual capability and community capacity to address different concerns (CFSI June 2003, 10. Tabang Mindanaw brochure).

It is quite absurd to lecture on capacity and capability building to a.group of people who carried themselves with remarkable capabilities and capacities in the course of evacuations, returns, and rebuildings in the past thirty years.
Solidarity and Beyond Aid

At this point, the real challenge for all concerned is to stop treating the displaced as the receiving end of aid and interventions. Ethics and decency demand that we learn. from the displaced on how they managed to persist in difficult circumstances. Capacities could be the basis of relationships in addressing situations of evacuation, the return and the rebuilding of war-affected communities. Finally, I think the urgent call is to work in solidarity with the bakwits instead of “helping” them and acting as their “service providers.” The issue of repeated displacements is not all about the bakwits. It is about armed conflict, an issue of importance to every resident of Mindanao the Philippines and even of Southeast Asia because we all stand to lose if the armed conflicts keep on repeating.

On 19 April 2002, two years after the 2000 all-out-war and less than a year before the massive offensive in Buliok on 11 February 2003, Presidential Consultant for Mindanao Paul Dominguez told a civil society round table forum on “The Costs of Mindanao Conflict and their Implications on the Budget,” that based on a “very preliminary” findings from a then—ongoing World Bank Study, “the present value of the ‘economic cost of a never-ending conflict would be at least USD2 billion over the next ten years” (Arguillas 2003):

The Power of the Displaced: A Force for Peace Advocacy

The tasks of ending the conflicts and the ensuing displacements is enormous, beckoning everybody to lend a hand. To echo a Bantay Ceasefire report: “If peace in Mindanao is going to be forged, thew it should not only be by two dozen or more people who compose the official peace panels and their technical committees, advisers and working groups, but by the millions of stakeholders living in what we hope would be former battlegrounds in the future” (Bantay Ceasefire 2003, 7).

I think, the bakwits are an enormous force that spring right from the war-ravaged areas. If the bakwit force is tapped in peace advocacy, they can unleash the energy, power, and network that could nip conflicts even before they can escalate. The bakwits in Buliok did just that and I’m confident that it can be done elsewhere and in the future.

The Philippine Economy: Policies for the 21st Century, Recent Performances and Prospects

It is my pleasure to be invited to speak before the distinguished teachers and students of the Ateneo de Davao University on its first Economic Forum sponsored by the Economics Society.

Today, I will discuss the economic policy choices of the Macapagal-Arroyo administration, what these policies have yielded in terms of the recent performance of the economy, and prospects for this year and next.

When the Administration took over in January 2001, it inherited several fundamental weaknesses.

Following the political shocks brought about by the involvement of former President Estrada in the illegal numbers game jueteng, business and consumer confidence deteriorated, resulting in high interest and inflation rates, and severe weakening of the peso against the US dollar. The immediate challenge was to restore macroeconomic stability and convince investors that the government was committed to long-term policies for growth with equity.

The Policies of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

Under the leadership of President Macapagal-Arroyo, a deficit-reduction program was put in place aimed at reducing interest and inflation rates, and stabilizing the peso-dollar exchange rate.

In addition, long delayed structural reforms were pursued. This resulted in the enactment of the Electric Power Industry Reform Act and the Anti-Money Laundering Law.

In her first State of the Nation Address, the President laid down her vision: eliminate poverty within the decade.

This calls for a comprehensive set of economic and social policies that are now spelled out in the Medium-Term Philippine Development Plan for 2001-2004.

The Plan has four key elements:
1. Macroeconomic stability with equitable growth based on free enterprise;
2. Agriculture and fisheries modernization with social equity;
3. Comprehensive human development and protecting the vulnerable; and
4. Good governance and the rule of law.

In only 19 months in office, the administration has laid down the foundation for creating prosperity within reach of every Filipino. Our countrymen, imbued with hard work and ingenuity, are responding positively to the policies of the Administration.

Recent Economic Performance

I will now present a report on the performance of the economy in 2001 until the first quarter of 2002. I will also describe the prospects for the rest of 2002 until next year. An update on the on-going projects here in Region XI will cap my presentation.

The year 2001 is one that many countries all over the world would want to forget. Far too many shocks with unwanted consequences occurred: (1) the retrenchment of the high-technology sector; and (2) the terrorist attacks in the US on 11 September 2001.

Fortuitously, the Philippine economy managed to overcome these shocks. Overall, the Philippine economy is healthy and strong Last year, it posted one of the highest output growth rates in the region.

Aggregate Performance 2001-2002

After a mild slowdown in 2001 following the severe slump in the technology sector and the delayed recovery of the US economy due to the September 11 attack, the economy strengthened in the first quarter of 2002, with gross domestic product (GDP) adjusted for inflation expanding by 3.8 percent from last year’s 2.9 percent.

Gross national product (GNP), which takes into account net factor incomes from abroad like the overseas workers’ income remittance, rose 4.9 percent as the country paid less in property expense due to lower interest on foreign debt (see fig. 1).

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Sectoral Performance 2001-Q12002

The recovery was broad-based, with growth accelerating across all sectors. Services led all sectors from a year ago, on account of the robust performance of telecommunications, trade, and private services. Agriculture expanded by 4.4 percent as favorable weather and the government support for Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act boosted production in crops, fishery, livestock, and poultry. Industry also recovered, led by rising production in consumer-durable sectors and the rebound in exports (see fig. 2).

Domestic and Foreign Demand

Growth was domestically driven, as personal consumption spending remained healthy while private construction accelerated. Strong domestic demand offset the decline in net exports arising from the lingering impact of the slump in the technology sector. In the second quarter, however, the indicators so far show a rebound in net exports (see fig 3).

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Gross Domestic Product: Annual Percent Change

Growth so far compares well with our neighbor in the region. As of the first quarter of 2002, the Philippine economic performance was ahead of Malaysia and Indonesia but slightly lower than Thailand (see Table 1).

Employment

About 1.3 million jobs were created as of April 2002. The bulk of the new jobs generated were in services and agriculture as shown in fig 4.

GDP-Region XI. 2001-2002

The healthy pace of economic expansion in the country a year ago is also seen in the modest improvement of Region XI’s economy. In 2001, the Davao region (Region XI) grew 2.1 percent. Davao Region is one of the country’s most progressive regions. It ranks 1st among Mindanao regions, accounting for 34.2 percent of Mindanao output, and 6th nationwide, accounting for a 5.6 percent share in the Gross Domestic Product (see fig. 5).

Gross Value Added by Sector

The services sector accounts for the largest share of the region’s GRDP (44%), with its trading activities contributing about nearly one-half of the sector’s output (44.1%).

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Thirty percent (30°,1)) of the region’s output comes from agriculture. It is the second largest contributor to agricultural production in the country, next to Region IV. It also has the 6th largest output in both services and industry sectors among all regions in the country (see fig. 6).

The Region’s Major Exports

Davao Region is noted for its high quality agricultural products which are among the region’s major exports. Banana is the top export of the region followed by pineapple, oil cake and other residue, yellow fin tuna, mixture of fruit preserves and natural rubber.

Among the region’s top 10 exports are non-agricultural products such as activated carbon and Portland cement.

Japan, China and the USA are the region’s major export markets. New and promising markets include Palau for Portland cement and New Zealand for its fruit preserves (see table 2).

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Leading Indicators for Second Quarter Growth

The momentum of growth of the country in the first quarter appears to have firmed up in the second quarter, based on the latest indicators. We are expecting the release of official data on national income accounts this last week of August.

The economy has been off to a good start in 2002. Favorable macroeconomic conditions augur well for a stronger recovery in consumer and investment demand. Inflation has been on the downtrend since January 2001 on account of the adequate supply of agricultural commodities, generally stable world oil prices, and recent change on electricity pricing. The falling inflation rate and the prudent borrowing strategy of the administration has also led to 91-day T-bill rates that are lower than a year-ago levels. Monetary policy, meanwhile, has made price stability its main goal. At the same time, the exchange rate system in place is flexible, allowing the peso to stabilize given the anti-inflationary stance of monetary policy and the fiscal discipline of the Administration.

The low interest rate environment has perked up the housing sector. The number of building permits granted in the first quarter of 2002 rose 16.3 percent, while value increased 56.3 percent. About 70 percent of the building permits issued are for residential purposes.

Our trade sector has also rebounded strongly. Exports remain dominated by electronic equipment and parts. The pick-up in both exports and domestic production has led to rising imports.

With the favorable domestic and external environment, the manufacturing sector has become more upbeat. Based on the results of the Monthly Integrated Survey of Selected Industries (MISSI) in May 2002, volume of production rose by 10.6 percent.

Notwithstanding the dry weather which precedes the onset of an El Niño, the agriculture sector expanded 2.5 percent in the second quarter leading to a first semester growth of 3.2 percent. The delayed rainfall affected palay production in the second quarter (-4.9%) and corn (-6.1%). However, there was an expansion in high value crops such as onion and cassava, as farmers shifted production to these crops. Livestock (3.1%), poultry (2.0°/o) and fishery (5.5%) posted strong growths (see table 3).

Other indicators such as Meralco sales and appliance sales also indicate that the economic recovery firmed up in the second quarter.

Business confidence has also improved in Region XI.

From January to July 2002, the total value of projects registered with BOI-Region XI reached P135 million from zero in the same period last year.

The projects registered in this period include the export of banana chips by: (a) Tropical Synergy in Davao City (P45 million); (b) GSL Enterprises in Davao del Sur (P45 million); and (c) Lucas International in Davao City (P45 million).

Moreover, BOI XI has received initial applications in the following investment areas: Landline expansion by Davao Telephone Company (DATELCO) in Tagum City (P200 million) and; Vapor Heat Treatment (VHT) expansion by DOLE-Tropi -Fresh Co, in Panabo City (P267 million). These represent the potential BOI registrants in the region for the second half of the year.

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Let me now discuss the prospects for 2002-2003.

Barring a renewed recession or a severe slowdown in the US economy, growth forecast for the rest of the year and 2003 remain cautiously optimistic. GDP growth, adjusted for inflation, is expected to grow 4.0-4.5 percent in 2002 and GNP by 4.5-5.0 percent. Growth is expected to accelerate to 5.0-5.5 percent in 2003 (see table 4).

Agriculture will post a slightly lower growth with El Niño, affecting the sector in the last quarter of 2002 to mid 2003. Services will continue to lead growth, as domestic demand continue to favor telecommunication, trade, and private services. Industry will grow at a faster pace, lifted by the continuing recovery in manufacturing and private construction, assuming that external demand conditions remain favorable to exports.

Prospects for 2002-2003: Domestic demand

Private consumer demand is expected to remain firm in 2002 as inflation remains modest. The continued remittance of overseas foreign workers (OFWs) and better labor market conditions will also continue to prop up domestic consumption.

Private construction demand is expected to pick up in 2002, given the low interest rate environment. Private construction is seen expanding robustly in 2003 pulled up by higher demand for housing. Housing is seen to pick up with the implementation of measures in housing finance such as that of the Home Guaranty corporation for low-cost housing The passage of the Special Purpose Asset Vehicle Act (SPAV) will also increase the resources available for the investment spending (see table 5).

Prospects for 2002-2003: Global Environment

A major risk to growth is the threat of a possible double-dip recession in the US in 2002-2003. However, the diversification of Philippine exports to the fast-growing Asian market, including China, increases the resiliency of the Philippine economy against a slowdown in the US economy.

China offers opportunities, evident from the fact that it is now in the top ten destination list of Philippine exports (see table 6).

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Prospects for 2002-2003: Domestic Environment

Macroeconomic stability remains crucial in ensuring strong domestic demand. Keeping a modest deficit relative to GDP is important in moderating domestic interest rates and in tempering inflationary expectations.

Barring extreme shocks to the economy and in line with the shift to inflation targeting, inflation is expected to remain tame in 2003 at 4.5 percent. The forecast is also conditioned on a moderate increase in the peso-dollar exchange rate (from P50-51 in 2002 and P51-52 in 2003); modest increases in global oil prices; and on measures to mitigate the impact of a mild El Niño on food supply (see table 7).

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Sustained growth and stability will also depend on structural reforms that will firm up business confidence and further improve the efficiency of the production sectors.

The cost of doing business is expected to decline with the rationalization of Independent Power Producers (IPP) contracts and with the implementation of the Electricity Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) and passage of the Transco bill. The Special Purpose Asset Vehicle (SPAN) bill will pave the way for greater lending to the corporate sector while strengthening the banking sector’s balance sheets. Finally, tax reforms that aim to improve the buoyancy of the tax system will enable the government to increase its investments in education, health, housing, agriculture, basic infrastructure, and peace and order. Recent moves such as the filing of charges against 300 VAT tax evaders and the Administration’s priority to reduce criminality are seen to boost investor morale.

The government remains committed to the development of Region XI. Thus, the following strategies shall be pursued for the next two and half years:

1. hasten agriculture and fisheries modernization
2. enhance the environment for further access in the global market
3. construct major roads, bridges and farm to market roads, and
4. set up mechanisms to improve, as well as expand the delivery of basic services and upgrade educational and health facilities.

Major Public Investment Programs and Projects

In support of the region’s development objectives, the government is currently implementing official development assistance (ODA) and locally funded programs and projects in the region to address its requirement in terms of infrastructure, human development services, agricultural development and agrarian reform, among others. There are two ongoing ODA projects in the region, namely: Davao International Airport Development Project and Construction and Equipping of the Davao Medical Center.

The Davao International Airport Development Project involves the upgrading of the Davao International Airport to International Civil Aviation Organization Standards at the existing site. This includes the upgrading and extension of existing runway; widening and grading of the landing strip; construction of dual access taxiway; the construction of new passenger terminal, cargo terminal and other airport operations, maintenance and air traffic control facilities. The project costs P4.2 billion and is being implemented by the Department of Trade and Commerce (DOTC), with support from the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The airport project supports the vision to further deepen the participation of Region XI in the national and international markets.

The Construction and Equipping of the Davao Medical Center aims to provide products and services necessary for the construction of the outpatient building; equipment necessary for the execution of the project and services thereof; and other services necessary for the transportation of these products. The project costs P860 million and is being implemented by the Davao City Government, with support from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

In addition, there are also on-going ODA infrastructure projects in support of the region’s development. These are the following:

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Continuing Challenges

At this point, let me acknowledge that the Philippines still faces several challenges, including reducing poverty incidence and unemployment rate.

However, a commitment to policies known to be working will be of great help.

These policies enhance the long-run prospects of the economy. Macroeconomic policies to ensure stability. Structural reforms aimed at raising the economy’s competitiveness. Good governance and rule of law to improve quality of life and investors’ confidence.

I am confident that the economy’s performance under the administration of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo brings greater hope for the future of the Philippine economy and that of Region XI than two years ago.

The support of all Filipinos, particularly the people of Mindanao and Region XI are key in transforming these policies into actual improvements in the people’s lives, especially those of the poor.

Thank you and good day.

A Day in the Vineyard

I thank the Ateneo de Davao University and its Board of Trustees for the singular honor they have bestowed on me today. As one of 500,000 volunteers in NAMFREL and one of seven commissioners in a collegial body, I am fortunate to have been chosen to represent them, and am deeply honored.

Today this university will test once more the reason for being an exalted institution of learning — the casting of seeds that shall help make of society a vineyard of the strong, the just, the wise, and the faithful.

This day belongs to the class of 1993, who deserve all our attention and congratulations.

But today is also a thanksgiving. For we would not be here today without the sacrifices of those whose pride in you, our graduates, surpasses all measure, those who have loved you more than their own selves — your parents. None of us had any choice of who our parents would be. They are a pure gift to us. So when all the celebration is done, you might want to spend a quiet moment with them to say “Thank You”.

My dear parents, these are the children you chose to bring into this world and they are now ready to face it on their own. I can understand your pride. How did they grow up so fast and so good-looking? They are the best and the brightest our school system can produce, and they come from Mindanao where culture and languages come together but which still elude us as the land of promise.

Members of class 1993, from this day on, you are free to live as your best judgment and your values will dictate. I do not mean that everything you learned up to this day must remain fixed and  unchanging, like dogma cast in stone. But the core values you received from home, this school, and your community, the ones that help provide what someone called the “Safety Net” of  character, will always be there, so that in the relentless onslaughts of adversity, you can look into your souls and draw from a wellspring of fortitude and strength.

Life is a constant exercise of the freedom of choice. As we make our choices, increasingly without our parents or teachers by our side, and own up to the mistakes that will surely come our way, we all find, sooner or later, that it can be terribly lonely to exercise this freedom and independence.

Choice and accountability lie at the root of what Fr. Samson asked me to talk about today. He asked that I speak on the problems, challenges, and opportunities facing all of us arising from our electoral process.

I can infer from his suggestion that we all agree that the electoral process is the responsibility of everyone and that elections are not only about opportunities but about challenges and problems. In
short, we cannot have freedom of choice without the responsibility of making the system work.

There is no real democracy without free elections. But making democracy work, just like elections, is a never ending process. As one cannot be a good Catholic only on Sundays, so must we contribute to the workings of democracy before, during and beyond election day.

The good citizen must look at democracy as more than the periodic selection of leaders, although such peaceful transfer of power, according to former President Aquino, is its most glorious and solemn moment. True that, on election day, our vote like a sacred blessing from heaven, must only be trusted to the most deserving. But a good citizen does not stop there. He must continually ensure that those he voted into office remain accountable at all times to the people. And if the one who won was not his choice, it is part of his responsibility to accept the verdict of the greater number as if it were his own, and to bring himself to work with them for the good of all. It is only in our oneness that we shall prevail.

That is why we at the COMELEC always stressed in the run up to the May 1992 elections that all citizens must be involved in the far-reaching, often difficult, reforms in institution-building that
will make our elections and, in a wider sense, the practices of democracy more efficient and more credible.

Despite the several achievements of the May 1992 elections, we know that it had many shortcomings and that the task of institution-building is far from finished. On the part of the COMELEC, we are already working on changing our tedious manualized system that leaves too much scope for human error or fraud and expect to accomplish this in three stages — pilot testing by the March 1994 barangay elections, partial installation by 1995, and full implementation by 1998.

We have drafted a new election code that incorporates the reforms envisaged by the Constitution but which have not yet been implemented, such as absentee voting for qualified Filipinos abroad, an anti-dynasty provision, a party-list system of representation, and illiterate voting without the use of assistors. We propose to adopt a system of continuous registration and computerized voters lists, and the introduction of new forms, systems, equipment, and safeguards that will finally bring our election to the modem age, where the winners can be determined unofficially by the media in three days, and, more important, accepted graciously l)y the losers even before the official proclamation, as is done in other countries.

Beyond the modernization of the electoral process, the challenge to all of us is to improve not only the way we choose leaders but also how we breed future leaders, how we can ensure that the
rules of the game remain fair and enforceable at all times, and how we can make our elected leaders more responsive to those they lead.

These require the lifetime dedication of many citizens. What we need are not just people willing to be martyrs, but people with the courage to face the day-to-day challenges of making the system
work.

Democracy has been criticized as not being effective enough for Filipinos because, it is said, it makes of us a nation of “talkers” and not “doers”. But those of us who are old enough to remember how an entire nation was alternately beguiled and coerced to give up a democracy for over a decade understand that the problem may not be with democracy itself. Rather it is with people who strive, but often fail, to make it work. As statesman Adlai Stevenson once said, “It is only by intense thought, by great effort, by burning idealism and unlimited sacrifice, that freedom has prevailed as a system of government.” There is a price to be paid for being free.

Indeed, we must learn to look at electoral heroism beyond the dramatic images of men and women clutching on to ballot boxes and teachers going sleepless for forty-eight hours to count ballots
by candlelight. These individual acts of courage are forever part of our nation’s history with undiminished value, yet the future of elections is in conscientious planning, organized handling of
ordinary chores, the motivation of underpaid officials, and, most important, the development of a new election culture.

The irony of life, but also its redeeming virtue, is that there are many men and women who are prepared to apply themselves with dedication to these tasks, and for that matter, to the other
tasks of good government, who never aspire for and are seldom rewarded with high appointment, election to public office or academic honors. But like the hundreds of thousands of small
businesses that make the economy work, even in the hardest times, they are the “doers”, and not the “talkers”, of our democracy. As Adlai Stevenson aptly said, “Patriotism is not the sudden and
frenzied outburst of emotion but the quiet and steady dedication of a lifetime.

I ask of you, will you choose to be the men and women of such character who will finally bring our troubled nation to its greatness? Will you place yourselves, to paraphrase Albert Camus, at the
service not of those who make history, but of those who suffer it?

My friends, two of our children are graduating this year, like yourselves, from the University of the Philippines one in medicine and the other in economics. When Fr. Samson asked me to speak to you today, I thought to myself, what would I tell my children about choice and accountability before they face the world on their own?

There is very little I can tell you that your parents, teachers, and friends have not counseled you through the years. But allow me to summarize the personal thoughts of a parent that you might
find useful. I have five, briefly…..

One, many of you will probably be making two important decisions soon — your first job, and your lifetime partner. No one can dictate that choice on you. But I urge you, if you decide to get married, to give this choice the importance it deserves, not only for your own sake, but for the well-being of those you will be serving in life.

There are far too many young, idealistic people, who could have done so much for their country, but instead turned to a life of indifference or irrelevance, with the lame excuse that they had
to do it “for their family”. That is the worst possible excuse anyone can give. That is why you should take deliberate care in choosing a life partner who shares the same vision and outlook in
life, though you may pursue different careers.

Two, in setting your goals, remember the simplicity of Andres Bonifacio’s single creed, “Seek thy country’s happiness above thine own”.

Three, when your best is not enough, and it is hard to be true to yourself, remember Mother Theresa. When asked why she was working in the dark hole of Calcutta where her life’s effort would
hardly amount to anything in relieving the misery of millions, she said “We are not asked to be successful, we are only asked to be faithful”.

Four, also remember, regardless of how passionately you may feel about your mission, to avoid being self-righteous and to please learn to forgive.

Finally, when you are confused with the many dilemmas that you will face in life, pause a while and look for the answer in your hand. The five fingers of your one hand say simply these words:
“You do it to me.” for the Lord said, “whatever you do to the least of my brethren, you do it to me.

Everything you do is rendered unto your Maker. Every deed, every word, big or small, either pains or honors him and that is the opportunity and ultimate accountability of those of you in the
vineyard of the Lord.

With these five thoughts and five words, I bid you Godspeed, and to reach for the stars in His name.

Commencement Address for the Graduating Class 1994 Davao Medical School Foundation

Today, we accompany young people in this rites of passage towards becoming doctors of medicine and doctors of dental medicine, young men and women who have just been given the opportunity to be of service to the country; persons who have been entrusted with the health of the nation.
Today, we welcome them and give them the best of our wishes as they leave the portals of the academe to commence with a new life and blaze the trail etched in their hearts and mind.

Time for Reflection

For today’s graduates, it is also the right time for reflection and introspection.

What awaits our new colleagues in the medical profession? To see the answer, it will help to reflect on the education and formation that have made you earn the degree of “Doctor of Medicine” and “Doctor of Dental Medicine”; to reflect on the events am. circumstances that coincided with the schooling process; to reflection our milieu where you are a vital part, now that you are weaned from school. These, my colleagues would also mean reflecting on the title “Doctor” – its meaning to us today, what responsibilities does it carry and what duties does it entail.

For witnessing the ebb and flow of societal change, the Class of 1994, I suppose, has a lot of existential moorings about what t4 do with their first year or first few years after leaving medical school and getting the board exams. Will they go abroad or pursue a similarly lucrative practice here? What institution will they  work for? Will they go to the remote areas where their expertise is most needed or go to the more financially rewarding and professionally enriching big city? Will they remain as witness or will they get involved in order for the country to make.that long over-due leap toward nationhood?

The Past Eight Years

Today’s graduates are fortunate. They are witness to the changing thresholds of history that started with EDSA. Today’s batch is leaving medical school and facing the world outside when Philip-pine society is at the crossroads of change. Hopefully a peaceful solution to the ills besetting Philippine society will be at hand.

This batch, therefore, has got much to hope for. But that hope is something that isn’t there OUTSIDE OF YOU. The hope is in you! It lies at the heart of what you want to achieve in your life: TO HAVE OR TO BE.

The democratic space we now enjoy is a product of years of struggle that started long before EDSA and continued long after. It was born out of persistent organizing and mobilizing, in the course of which countless lives were offered to make the torch of freedom burning. Davao was an arena in all these struggles. And the lives of many of its best minds were sacrificed so that others including you, members of Class of 94, may live to see the light.

We cannot say that it is only the medical school that you have been remolded. The upheavals in our milieu has affected our psyche, our social being, our whole educational process. For never before has Philippine society been filled with so many lessons as in the last eight years.

Many events jolted us and continue to bear weight on our logic: the attempted coups that dealt blows to an already battered economy; the killing near Malaca_ang of peasant marchers clamoring for genuine land reform; the slaying by still unidentified elements of progressive leaders who survived the dark days of the dictatorship; the perrenial brownouts; the unabated dependence on foreign capital to fuel the economy; graft and corruption; criminality; and the endless politicking.

But let not these things weaken our resolve to serve our people and dampen our hope.

 The Challenge to Class 1994

Let me digress a bit to share the tribulation of a health worker now in government to enable us to view the anatomy of hope.

In mid-1992, upon joining the Department of Health, I was shown a thick compilation of health indicators by old hands in the bureaucracy. Breezing through tables and tables of statistic, my attention got stuck on a page bearing the data that 6 out f 10 Filipinos die without seeing a doctor. It got my attention n t for the fact that such a piece of information touches one’s conscience, but because it was the same piece of information that ma me opt to serve in the rural area 18 years ago after leaving medical school. Not without a sense of irony, I asked my new colleagues in government, “Isn’t it that 18 years ago, there were only 7 medical schools in the country producing 800 graduates, compared to the present number of 27 producing around 3000 graduates?”

We have come a long way in producing human resources for health. From 7 medical schools in 1974 to 27 in 1993. Fro 1800 medical students who graduated in 1974 to 3000 in 1993. We’ve produced not only quantity, but quality graduates as well; graduates who count among the best and the brightest in the medical and allied professions here and abroad, earning the respect and admiration of fellow professionals in other countries.

But now, we ask, how far have we gone in reaping this rich harvest?

To our dear graduates now coming into grip with the question of hope in this country, there is a corollary question that demands your intellectual honesty:

Is there hope for a country that produces 3000 medical graduates each year when

60% of Filipinos die without medical attention

92% of morbities and 51% of mortalities are still due to communicable yet preventable diseases

276/day infant mortality rate has remained high at 60 deaths per 1,000 births Everyday 55 Filipinos die of Tuberculosis, and 15 die of Renal Disease

186 municipalities are still without doctors?

Clearly, the answer to the question lies in your collective response to the challenge. AND THE CHALLENGE IS YOURS FOR THE TAKING.

 

Goal of the Davao Medical School

 

As reflected in the mission statement of the Davao Medical School, its goal is “to develop a graduate who is a “person for others”, responsible and competent, of high moral caliber, Filipino oriented and imbued with a sense of personal worth.”

Since you are now graduates of the Davao Medical School, this is the right; time to ask whether you are the graduates that the Davao Medical School intended to mold. The following are questions which only you can answer:

Are you a person for other?
Do you feel responsible and competent?
Is there a sense of personal worth within you now?
Do you have a high moral caliber?
Are you Filipino oriented?

These are also the questions which I posed to your counter-parts nine years ago, a time of political and economic turmoil and intense social agitation. Now, as the country stands in the cross-roads, those questions are more relevant than ever.

 

What the DOH is Doing

 

From elite democracy we still have to evolve to a participatory one more conducive for the advancement of social justice and equity; of giving more to those who have less in life; of empowering those who are at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder so that we can bring them in to the mainstream of the country’s economic and political life.

The public health sector can be considered as a trail-blazer in people empowerment. Long before the word became an election battlecry and, later on, a guiding principle of the Ramos administration, people empowerment or people’s participation has been the spirit in all well-meaning health endeavors, be it by NGOs or the government. The Primary Health Care concept and the Community Based Health Program attest to the health sector’s pioneering works in the community. And this could not have happen d . had there been no medical professionals willing to serve hand n hand with other professionals in depressed areas.

Cognizant that the people themselves must master the determinants of health that shape their lives and that of their communities, we in the Department of Health are gradually moving away from our role as a provider of health services, and are moving toward the vision of putting HEALTH IN THE HANDS OF T E PEOPLE.

The DOH needs your support in achieving this goal. And f r those of you who intend to serve in the rural area for even just a year or two after leaving medical school, I can assure you, th t although the financial compensation is nothing compared to private practice or what you will be earning abroad, the satisfaction and fulfillment you will derive from serving the people will always be a treasured part of your life, of your search for character.

Presently, the DOH is working on a package for young doctors (and eventually, nurses and dentists) aimed at striking a balance between the desire to serve the people and the desire to have; a sort of financial stimulation to get and keep the adrenalin going. The fear of intellectual stagnation while serving the rural area is likewise being addressed by continuing education programs like free subscription to medical journals and attendance to major seminars or trainings four times a year. I should say, though, that this fear of intellectual stagnation is not warranted, especially if one is innovative and research- oriented.

Address to Parents

Parental expectation is indeed one of the most difficult realities a new medical and dental graduate has to face. Thus, I would like to address also the parents of the graduating class of 1994 present here now.

Dear parents, I am sure that becoming a community physician or community dentist is not what you expect of your son or your daughter. However, there is a need for us to respond to our country’s health situation which demands the services of your son or your daughter at this point in our history.

Despite 27 medical schools producing about 3,000 doctors a year, 6 out of 10 people die without medical attention. Despite this big number of medical graduates each year, 186 municipalities have not seen a doctor for the last 20 years.

I am certain that there are members of the Class of 1994 who long to nourish their character by serving the poor in the community. But I am also just as sure that fear of parental rejection makes them ambivalent towards community service.

To borrow from the words of former Senator Saguisag: For a while, the new doctors and dentists will follow that star that leads them to the remote and depressed areas where medical expertise is most needed, but somewhere down the road, the thought of their parents despising them, labeling them as failures for not being affluent will get into their nerves. They will kiss a dream goodbye and join those who serve the rich and the powerful with ruthless efficiency. In the process, they help reinforce their clients’ near monopolistic stranglehold on the country’s finest talents, aggravating the inequities in our society.

Dear parents, allow your sons and daughters to give us even just a year of their life.

 Concluding Remarks

According to ancient sage Herodotus, “The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be lighted.

It has always been that “a teacher’s greatest satisfaction is that we have lit a fire in the students under our care. Our greatest let-down, however, has always been that after lighting such fire in our students, they graduate and then are never given the opportunity to spread the fire that burns in them.”

Members of the Class of 1994 of the Davao Medical School, the fire in you has been lit up by the dedication of your teachers and your parents! Reach out your hands! Lives are waiting for you to touch, to heal! Embrace the people, the unwashed, the marginalized and the oppressed and spread the fire that burns in you.

Mabuhay! Congratulations!

I would like to end my address to the Class of ’94 by sharing my poetic reflection on one year of community service that you are called upon to give:

Isang Taon Para sa Sambayanan

Ang isang taon ay hindi dalawa, tatlo o lima.
Isang taon na ngayo’y narito bukas ay wala na.
Isang tag-ulan at tag-init na maaaring gugulin
Sa libirinto ng sa kalansing ng pilak
at hinabing pangarap.
O,
Isang tag-ulan at tag-init na sarili ay mapagya-yabong
tulad ng halamang gubat o papandayin sa isang
matalas na tabak sa piling ng mga mahihina, api at hamak.

Isang taon, ialay ninyo sa sambayanan.

Community Outreach for the Promotion of Micro-Enterprises in Davao (COPE-DAVAO)

COPE is one of the many projects administered by the Institute of Small Farms and Industries (ISFI), an NGO organized under the auspices of the Ateneo de Davao University. The COPE was made possible by a grant from the Association for Non-traditional Education in the Philippines of which the Ateneo de Davao was a founding member.

Project Objectives

1. To conduct from four to twelve skills and management trainings among 45 beneficiaries composed of cultural minorities, out-of-school youth and women entrepreneurs

2. To form three organizations

3. From the trainings, acquired, the three organizations would be enabled to access credit facilities for their community project

4. The Association for Non-traditional Education in the Philippines (ANTEP) assisted COPE in Davao Project would showcase the project

A project orientation was done last March 13, 1992 with the project staff: project coordinator, cell coordinators and other staff of the three units of the University: Ateneo Livelihood Outreach
Program (ALOP), Business Information and Training Center (BITC) and Institute for Small Farms and Industries (ISFl). The project orientation was a sort of review of project documents, leveling of
expectations, setting of target outputs especially for the first quarter of project implementation, resource allocation and setting up of schedules.

Since the project will cater to three different groups, it was agreed that the launching and multi-sectoral dialogue be conducted separately, preferably in the site of the target groups. Launching and Multi-sectoral dialogues were done simultaneously as follows:

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The launching had to be done to formally introduce the project to the target group in the presence of government and non government agencies which would have a direct or indirect contribution to the project. The multi-sectoral dialogue was envisioned to be the venue for finding out how efforts can be
coordinated towards achieving a common goal.

The launching and multi-sectoral dialogue served as good venues for information dissemination regarding the COPE-Davao Project. The information dissemination was further reinforced through person-to-person talk and dissemination by word-of-mouth and utilization of key informants.

A survey was conducted in order to find out how the project will create a difference in the lives of the participants. The impact of the project will be evaluated. Surveys were done by ALOP, BITC & ISFl within the first quarter of project implementation. Survey results were feedbacked to the target groups, and served as the basis for planning. Feedbacking and planning were conducted in separate venues and dates as follows:

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Training Programs

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Monitoring activities followed after the trainings were conducted. Hands-on/application of learnings was tested in cooperatives, individual businesses and in the case of the out-of-school youth — in the practicum part of the training.

Organizing activities were done to achieve another project objective which is organizing target beneficiaries into three. The three groups were in the different organizational stages; two in
the formation stage and one, in the strengthening stage.

Results/ Outputs

1. Three trainings were conducted for a total of 61 participants
2. Three groups were in the process of forming an organization
3. Three community profiles were prepared from the three groups

Problems Encountered and Actions Taken

Target beneficiaries identified a skills training activity (dressmaking) which could not be addressed by COPE-Davao due to resource limitations and because it is beyond the scope of work of ISFI. Some participants who were still interested in dressmaking skills were referred to ALOP which offers such course. ALOP did not have any problems since its training program has long been established. AU throughout the training period, everything went on smoothly as expected.

Initially, the BITC cell coordinator had limited the area to Davao City Women Entrepreneurs. However, after a review of logistics support for monitoring, it was considered impossible to accept just any Davao City entrepreneur client. The area focus is Toril District, Davao City but not necessarily limited to it. Another venue for area-focused seminar is being considered, e.g. the St. Joseph’s Parish House in Toril.

Insights and Remarks

1. There is an opportunity to expose the cell coordinator’s students in Entrepreneurship to the COPE-Davao participants/clients;

2. Faculty members and other resource persons signified willingness to help prepare training modules together with the women entrepreneurs;

3. COPE-Davao continuous education would need further support in terms of technical and financial assistance;

4. The project will need to actively link up with existing micro-enterprise development program of DTI and NGOs if it wants to sustain its membership and be a showcase;

5. COPE-Davao compliments well with the ongoing livelihood projects in Salaysay and will help strengthen the existing organization by involving also the women sector;

6. ALOP is grateful to ANTEP for believing and supporting the non-formal education program that is badly needed in this country.

Second Quarter – June 16 – Sept. 15,1992

1. Trainings on Food Processing for Fish, Meat and Fruits were requested.

2. Community Organizing: Post-training will focus on getting to know the women in their workplace.

3. Marketing Linkages: More small group sessions to share marketing strategies will help during planned monthly meetings with the women.

4. Post-training Activities: A micro-lending activity of COPE-Davao will be piloted with two women who attended the 1st seminar. The Cell coordinator will provide technical assistance as service of BITC.

The second quarter covered the following activities:

1) Training for Auto Mechanics:
A) ALOP – Auto-Mechanics (continuation of previous)
B) BITC – Visioning Seminar
C) ISFI – Toyo and Soap Making

2) Post Training Activities:
Monitoring
Organizing

3) Staff Meetings and Planning

4) Process Documentation

In the overall assessment, the second quarter of project implementation turned-out to be smooth sailing with the expected output satisfactorily achieved and resources are utilized within set  schedule.

Activities Conducted

Three (3) trainings were conducted as follows:

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Post-Training Activities:

A) Monitoring Results:

1. A pilot micro-lending was provided by BITC to two-women entrepreneurs, one new and the other, an old member, to try-out an integrated approach to enterprise development. Each was provided two thousand pesos (P2,000.00). A monitoring scheme was installed to document enterprise growth. Consultancy services were provided in the residences of the two women during Sundays and
Saturdays.

2. There were follow-up meetings done by ISFI staff. The women’s group in Salaysay planned the income generating  project. The group decided to undertake agri-based projects  specifically, goat-raising since there is a great demand for goat meat. Soap and toyo-making which they will produce after learning how to make them will initially be produced for household consumption only and later when the quality is already good, they will produce them on a commercial scale.

3. Fifty percent of the graduates of the auto-mechanic course were given a Trade Testing Examination last June. Some of them have landed an on-the-job training in various auto repair shops through the recommendation of the ALOP staff. Their performance is also being monitored by the staff.

4. The ANTEP Regional Coordinator, Melfe Gallego, visited the Salaysay Women’s group last August 28,1992.

B) Community Organizing and Results:

1. The ISFl assisted group of Salaysay Women has organized themselves into an association which is tentatively named: Salaysay Women’s Association (SWA). They have elected their leaders and have already initiated some social and economic activities in the barangay. Membership has grown to 19 women.

2. A cooperative was organized with an ad-hoc set of core group last Aug. 15. To date, two meetings have been conducted. Membership has reached to 20 women. This group is being monitored by BITC.

3. The ALOP assisted out-of-school youth were not yet so keen about organizing themselves as they were still occupied with their on-the-job training.

C) Staff Meetings and Planning

Meetings among cell coordinators were done last Aug. 19 and Sept. 2,1992. The meetings served as the venue for updating and sharing of experiences and whereabouts of the projects assisted by the three cells. Included in the discussion were results of the intervention, problems encountered and their solutions, possible areas of coordination, linkage building and planning for the next quarter of project implementation.

In the planning session, the cell coordinators discussed strategies on how to go about accomplishing the expected outputs of the project.

Results/ Outputs

Objective 1: six trainings were conducted for a total of 77 participants;

Objective 2: two groups were organized and one group staff showed a potential to be organized.

Objective 3: three groups were developed m terms of  capability to eventually access credit facilities tor
their project;

Objective 4: ANTEP assisted COPE-Davao Project has gained six months in experience in the project and has documented it for future use by ANTEP.

Others: two progress reports with picture documentation.

Problems Encountered and Actions Taken

1. ALOP had a problem on materials for the OSY training. It could not provide all the materials needed for the actual workshop because the fund allotment is so small to buy the major parts of the machineries. Some of the materials had to be provided by the participants themselves. Despite these constraints, all throughout the training period, everything went smoothly.

2. BITC recognized the need for a community organizer to respond to the various needs for technical, consultancy and other needs. BITC had to tap a community organizer from another organization to assist in post-training activities for the third quarter.

3. The distance to Salaysay posed a problem to ISFI which invited the resource persons. What ISFI did was to conduct the training in Lumondao which is more accessible to transportation but the invited resource persons did not show up, so ISFI staff had to act as resource persons themselves and so the training was pushed through.

Insight and Remarks

1. Inputs on Community Empowerment in the Visionary Seminar got the strongest reaction and most of the questions from the participants.

2. Positive traits were usually: honesty, sincerity, loyalty, loving, caring, generosity, readiness to serve, accepts feedback, well-disciplined. A seminar for GKK church workers was requested from COPE-Davao.

3. Male participation was proposed and the continuing education program and gender sensitive activities will be scheduled.

4. Micro-enterprises in far-flung areas need to be related to the capabilities of the implementors / beneficiaries / project holders and support systems like facilities, infrastructures, marketing and financing.

5. Micro-enterprise development in the countryside is very important if we are to push for real rural development.

Third Quarter, Sept. 16 – Dec. 31,1992

The project has already attained its momentum which ALOP, BITC, and ISFI, COPE-Davao implementors tried to continue through the following activities:

– conduct of trainings
– monitoring of training learnings/re-entry plans
– organizing activities
– linkage building
– product marketing and marketing materials development
– pilot testing of livelihood projects
– picture documentation

Some changes occurred in the process of implementing the
project, these were necessary in order to get quality and quantity
results.

Activities and Results

1. In addition to the six trainings conducted during the first and second quarters of project implementation, three more trainings were conducted, two of which were formal ones while the other one was conducted on a one-on-one approach or consultancy service type.

The three trainings are as follows:

1. Cooperative Development Seminar, facilitated by BITC last December 16,1992 at the St. Peter’s  College of Toril.

2. Auto-Mechanic Training, facilitated by ALOP which started in Nov. 11, 1992 at the ALOP training center. The training is still  on-going.

3. Diagnosing the health of the enterprise (consultancy sessions), facilitated by ISFl with Davao Handicraft and Marilao Bag Making Projects. This was done last Nov. 5, 6 & 7, 1992. After each         training, the participants were monitored to find out how the training were applied by the participants in their individual or group. The impact of the training assistance was monitored             and evaluated. It was however, too early to gauge the extent of help the training has provided to the participants.

2. ALOP had difficulty organizing the graduates of the auto-mechanic training due to the nature of their jobs. Some of them have proceeded to auto-mechanic upgrading skills training, others were already working in small industrial establishments while some went to work outside Davao City. As a result, ALOP concentrated in training while the organizing of one more group was facilitated by ISFl. There are now three organized groups of women under the COPE- Davao Project. These are the following:

a. Women’s Cooperative of Toril
b. Salaysay Women’s Association
c. Likhang Dabaw

The members of the Women’s Cooperative of Torll were engaged in food processing and vending activities, specifically: variety store, guava jelly/ vinegar/ papaya pickle, ice candy, sampaloc candy, hog raising, soy sauce. Four of these six enterprises were provided financial assistance of P2,000.00 each.

The Women’s Cooperative has been linked with PECTOFOUND (People’s Economic Council, Toril Foundation) and has been prioritized by PECTOFOUND in its lending project. It was considered by PECTOFOUND for a P60,000.00 loan. This was brought about by the pilot-tested livelihood projects with
which the cooperative (through BlTC’s prodding) engaged.

Regular meetings were also held to strengthen the women’s cooperative. In Nov. 29 and Dec. 6, the cooperative met to discuss matters and activities pertaining to the organization.

The Salaysay Women’s Association members were onto backyard goat-raising through the seed fund assistance of ISFI. Their p’ n was to allow all members to enjoy the benefit of raising goats for additional income through capital build-up scheme. After the first four beneficiaries have fully paid the goats, the payment will be used for purchasing additional stocks, to be distributed to other members of the association. The association also planned to toyo and soap making as their income generating project in January.

Likhang Dabaw is a core group of handicraft entrepreneurs in Davao which ISFI assisted in marketing their products through selling missions, display center, developing of marketing materials
(brochures/hand-outs), product promotion and linkage building.  Some of the members have availed of credit assistance from ISFI and other NGOs but still needed marketing assistance.

So far, the assistance provided to the group were: display of their products at ISFI, selling missions in Davao, Cebu and Manila during trainings attended by ISFI staff. Information materials were also being developed to provide further inputs to the different entrepreneurs of Likhang Dabaw. The group is still relatively new but results were already positively coming out like increase in sales, additional market outlets, etc.

By means of the training and organizing activities, the three organizations were linked to possible credit sources: The Women’s Cooperative was linked with PECTOFOUND and was being considered for funding in the amount of P60,000.00. The Salaysay Women’s Association will also benefit from the incoming assistance of CEBEMO for Salaysay. The Likhang Dabaw individual members were already linked to DTI, Sikap Foundation and other formal lending institutions for their additional capital requirement. Marketwise, the marketing assistance has paved the way towards Likhang Dabaw products to be known to Tulay sa Pag-unlad, PHILSSA, Institute of Primary Health Care, PBSP, Social Development Volunteers, SBI and a lot more NGOs, GOs which were reached through the selling missions.

The ANTEP assisted COPE-Davao Project has already served as a showcase project to some NGOs inDavao but not with ANTEP assisted institutions. DAP sa Dabaw, OWWA-DOLE and PBSP have exposed their training participants to COPE-Davao assisted entrepreneurs and the entrepreneurs had to chance to interact with the training participants and share their experience with them.

Meetings among cell coordinators were held last October 15, November 23 and December 17, 1992. These meetings provided a venue for updating the individual coordinators on the status of the projects and group assisted projects. There are also times when sharing of experiences were done in an informal manner.

The overall project coordinator also made monitoring visits to respective cells to interact with the cell members. During the meeting with cell members/ beneficiaries some needs were expressed regarding continuation of the project for another year as they have not yet made their organization strong as to be independent from the assistance of BITC, ALOP and ISFI.

Photo documentation was also done to add to the documents and files of COPE-Davao project.

Problems Encountered and Actions Taken/Insights

1. There was a problem of organizing the graduates of ALOP’s auto-mechanic training because of their pressing need for more learnings and earnings. What COPE-Davao did was to replace the youth organizations with another women organization. The skills training activity continues at A LOP but the organizing aspect was deleted from their concerns and was taken over by ISFI. The scheme yielded positive result as the group now presently assisted in the marketing of their products are now entrepreneurs with on-going enterprise activities.

2. The target client — the poorest of the poor families is a difficult but challenging sector. The strategies must vary by family hence, flexibility is needed at most times.

3. Schedules of meeting with the cell members/beneficiaries were difficult because of the tight schedule of the entrepreneurs. The market vendors were also not available during the day. The most successful attendance at meeting were those held on Sunday evenings.

4. The major selection criteria was limited to women’s desire and need for continuing education. No one has been scheduled so far.

Plans for the Next Quarter:

1. Registration of the Women’s Cooperative of Toril with the Cooperatives Development Authority.

2. Installation of a Food Retailing Business at Toril Public Market managed by the Women’s Cooperative of Toril for Feb. to March 1993 funded from post training funds.

3. Submission of a proposal to ANTEP for COPE-Davao Phase

4. Selling missions for Likhang Dabaw by ISFI staffers: Villa Victoria (Davao) – Jan. 21 & 22 (PDS4 Evaluation) Cebu-Jan 25 – 26 (SBI Director’s meeting) MTRC pavao) – Jan. 26 – 31 (Process Documentation trng.) Cagayan – Jan. 27 – 29 (SJSA meeting) Manila – Feb. 10 -12 (PHILSSA trng.) Baguio – March 16,17 & 18 (Financial Mgt. trng. for SEED)

5. Distribution of marketing materials to Likhang Dabaw members

6. Monitoring of all COPE-Davao projects

7. Salaysay Women’s Association marketing and purchasing of additional goat stocks for batch 2; Production of soap for marketing locally

As a result of the project, the following unanticipated benefits turned out: COPE-Davao BITC cell’s linkage with the People s Economic Council and GTZ became stronger. It was through for Women Entrepreneurs came into being. BITC planned to go into case writing for Women Entrepreneur. BITC also has a significant learning from the COPE-Davao Project that is: continuing education for women also means family empowerment through couple involvement. As in the case of ALOP, another COPE-Davao cell, the project paved the way towards more collaborative effort with the National Manpower and Youth Council. ALOP makes use of government resources, match this with NGO capability and thus produce a good product: skilled out-of-school youth. As for ISFI, the COPE-Davao Project provided a very good venue for training and consultancy in the business sector, the professional way. With the consultancy and training provided, it not only harnesses the skill of the staff and resource persons involved but it also opened new opportunities and greater profits for the different enterprises assisted.

The COPE-Davao project has indeed provided the women assistance in the aspects of education, social and economic. On the education side, the trainings enabled the women to gain knowledge and skills in their income generating projects . It may not be covering one hundred percent information as they also  have stock knowledge but the inputs provided to them are things they can make use of at present or in the near future. On the social aspect, since the project also is concerned about organizing, it has also paved the way towards closer relationship among women in the community. It has made them work towards a common goal of improving their lives and become economically productive. The project in this line, became a venue for unity, sharing a common vision. On the economic angle, while there were income generating projects, the women were able to start new livelihood projects, improve existing ones and develop their capability in accessing resources from the outside.

Summary of Results

> Opportunity opened to expose the students in Entrepreneurship to the COPE-Davao clients.

> Linkages inside and outside the university were built.

> COPE-Davao Project compliments well with the 3 cell’s
ongoing projects.

> COPE-Davao Project is grateful to ANTEP for believing and supporting the non-formal education that is badly needed and still lacking in this country.

> Micro-enterprises in far-flung areas need to be related with the capabilities of the implementors and beneficiaries alike.

> Micro-enterprises development in the countryside is very important if we are to push for real rural development.

> Participatory approach to organizing will get people to be more responsible and be capable.

> Training supported with other assistance packages will create
more impact than if it is provided all by itself.