Ben Contreras FILIPINOS need not go hungry. But why are they? Somebody reacted to my column “Help feed the poor,” and I called him up. His observation, Filipinos are lazy. They wait for government help but don’t help themselves. In a way, I agree and disagree. It brought me to Google, and I searched for “Masagana 99.” Instead, I found this article: Duterte to adopt President Ferdinand E. Marcos’ Masagana 99 to become self-sufficient in rice. “Masagana (bountiful) 99 was a program that promoted the planting of Green Revolution varities of rice developed by International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in 1973. “None of the former Philippine Presidents after Marcos gave attention to agriculture.” I believe there were programs initiated by past presidents after Marcos to help and promote agriculture. Why Masagana 99 failed could have gone the way the others went: corruption. Remember the Fertilizer Scam that brought Jocjoc Bolante to the limelight? It was just one. The latest discovery of Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol about farm implements and equipment lying idle and exposed to elements is another. Nobody really wants to help our farmers; many are only interested on their pockets. For them, people must remain poor so that they would continue to rely on the government represented by corrupt officials. They must remain dependent on doleouts. Were or are our farmers equally guilty of these failures? Perhaps, because when they’re granted assistance, they first buy “refs and TVs” and others that are luxury to them. But this is not going to be a case of “Which comes first, the egg or the chicken?” Growing crops takes time. What would they do in between? This is where the government, if sincere, must come in. Provide other sources of income. If successful, bring health care and school to a growing or reviving community. In the last few decades, farmers and their children seem to have abandoned their farm for better life in the urban areas. Many failed because they lacked education. Some eventually fell to the ills of our society and became liabilities. The abandoned lands became easy prey for greedy capitalists like huge logging and mining companies. Thus, our food production index plunged. This is a repeated story of the P1 billion in farm implements and equipment donated by China years ago. They were left to the elements and deteriorated to uselessness. A second attempt was made but our government officials allegedly wanted cash. The Chinese government rejected that. A donation was allegedly made by the National Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Manila about seedlings given to a local government in central Mindanao. That was more than two or three years ago. Whatever became of that, we have no idea. Should there be any again in the future, especially if it would be coming from China, we might as well request for a contingent of Chinese farmers to lead and show us how to do it. They can also teach us how to make use of the available materials growing just about anywhere but are being ignored. Piñol has so far been the most active cabinet member of President Duterte. I am confident that if our President will adopt the Masagana 99 concept, then we can finally say, “Indeed, why should we Filipinos go hungry?”