Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap yesterday assured that he will look into the complaints of the farmers in central Negros Occidental about the work slippage at the Bago River Irrigation System that they said is causing a drop in their rice production, and millions of pesos in losses.

Yap, when contacted by the DAILY STAR, directed National Irrigation Administrator Carlos Salazar to act on the concerns raised by the farmers.

Salazar told the DAILY STAR he will evaluate the situation and meet with officials of the China International Water and Electric Corp., and decide next week on action to be taken on the problem.

Gov. Isidro Zayco, in a letter yesterday, asked President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo and Yap to look into the request of rice farmers for the National Irrigation Authority to partially takeover the CIWEC rehabilitation of the BRIS.

In his letter, the governor also attached the resolution of the farmers through their Federation of Irrigators Associations in Central Negros seeking the takeover.

Zayco said the delayed rehabilitation work has affected the farming operations of about 5,866 farmers.

“We hope that this matter is given utmost attention as this also affects the food security program of Negros Occidental,” Zayco said.

Zayco said action should be taken on the BRIS problem amid the current high prices of rice. If the farmers can produce more rice this would bring down prices, he said.

CIWEC’s delay in the completion of some portions of the project as scheduled has resulted in the non-delivery of water and non-planting of crops, which have caused P500,000 in losses from February to May, the FIANC resolution said.

The P500,000  is based on the losses on a 10,000-hectare area  that would have yielded 100 cavans per hectare costing P400 to P500 each, it added.

The BRIS covers portions of Murcia, Pulupandan, Valladolid and San Enrique towns, and Bacolod,  Bago and La Carlota cities.,  composed of 12,777 hectares of rice lands and 500 hectares of sugarcane land, FIANC said.

SLIPPAGE ABOUT 10%

NIA-BRIS project manager Samuel Japitana yesterday said the estimated CIWEC work slippage is about 10 percent, and the final evaluation of its work will be on May 16.

If CIWEC does not catch up on its slippage by May 16, Japitana said he will recommend the partial takeover of its work to hasten the BRIS rehabilitation.

CIWEC needs to catch up on its work on the BRIS main canal and its J and C lateral systems, Japitana said.

The FIANC, in its resolution, also called for the replacement of CIWEC project manager Jiang Xia Hua for allegedly being arrogant, insensitive and incapable of having a healthy relationship with farmers.

‘IT’S NOT OUR FAULT’

The CIWEC official yesterday, however, said the slippage is based on their original work schedule which is not reasonable because of abnormal rain encountered from October last year to the present.

He pointed out that, in February, normal rain days are four but they got 21 days this year, in March there were 19 instead of four rain days, and in April there were 13 instead of four.

The normal rain days being referred to are based on their bidding document with NIA based on rainfall data of PAG-ASA in La Carlota City, he said.

Rainfall is just a good example to explain why the original schedule is not acceptable to all sides, he said.

The CIWEC official said there were also other factors that have caused slippage, such as having had 11 working days less than what was required last year because of a requirement of the farmers.

People complain without looking at what is happening at the site, the delay in not our fault and we should be given time extension, he said.

We have an agreement with NIA and are following what is on paper, he also said.

CIWEC had won a P773-million contract to rehabilitate the BRIS. Its contract of work started April 2006 and will end on March 2009, FIACN said.*CPG

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