WHILE recognizing the importance of the fight against corruption, Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan said he declined to chair the powerful Senate Blue Ribbon Committee because he wants to focus on leading agricultural reforms to push his 15-year-long fight for food security and rural development.
During an interview with DZRH on Thursday, October 9, the senator and chair of the Committee on Agriculture, Food, and Agrarian Reform emphasized the urgent need to address the pressing challenges faced by Philippine agriculture.
He explained that his decision was driven by his desire to sustain the progress already made in improving the lives of those who rely on the said sector.
“Matindi rin kasi ang problema ng agrikultura sa ngayon – sektor ng magasasaka at mangingisda. Mabigat din ang problema (sa) kakulangan ng pagkain at kakulangan ng suporta sa ating agri at fisheries sectors
,” he responded when asked about why he declined the offer to head the committee in charge of looking into erring government officials.
Pangilinan reflected on the progress he has made at the helm of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, particularly during a recent hearing where he questioned the persistent gaps in the government’s efforts to curb smuggling.
During the hearing, he lamented that more than half of the smuggling cases from 2021 to 2025 were dismissed due to incomplete documentation from the Bureau of Customs (BOC).
He pointed out that billions of pesos worth of goods are seized each year without a single big-time smuggler being charged with a non-bailable offense under the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Law.
“Sampung taon na itong Anti-Economic Sabotage Law ng agriculture products na non-bailable. Pero hanggang ngayon, sa awa ng Diyos, wala pang nakukulong na smuggler,” the senator said.
“Lalabanan natin ito dahil ito ang dahilan bakit pabagsak ng pabagsak ang ating outputs at produkto sa agrikultura, at tumataas ang presyo ng pagkain dahil kasama diyan yung smuggling na pinapatay ang lokal na produksyon natin,” he added.
Pangilinan also pointed out that corruption and the weakening of political institutions are also increasingly evident in the agricultural sector, where farmers, fisherfolk, and consumers bear the brunt of inefficiency.
“Sino ang mga importer ng private sector na involved? Sino ang Usec. Bernardo sa smuggling? Sino ang Brice Hernandez at Engineer Alcantara ng smuggling? Sino ang mga Discaya ng smuggling?” he asked.
“‘Yan ang mga hinahanap natin dahil itong maliliit na lamang ulit ang lumalabas at napatunayan na may ebidensiya habang yung mga big fish ay wala pa, pero hahabulin natin sila,” the senator vowed.
Pangilinan was included in the list of candidates for the Blue Ribbon Committee chairmanship after Senator Panfilo Lacson resigned as chair. Senator Erwin Tulfo now sits as acting chairman of the committee.
