Rep. Juan Ponce “Jack” Enrile Jr. (Cagayan, 1st District), who is running for senator in 2013, on Saturday pledged to support whatever measures are needed to safeguard the viability of the sugar industry in Negros Occidental.

Enrile said he will support the proposed Sugarcane Industry Development Act, while House Bill 4626 that he has authored to ensure the country’s food security also gives teeth to the drive against smuggling of agricultural products, including sugar, to protect the country’s farmers.

House Bill 4626 creates an anti-smuggling task force to be placed under the Department of Agriculture to protect the country’s agricultural produce from smuggling, he said.

Enrile, who was the guest at a luncheon hosted by the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters header by Enrique Rojas, was in Bacolod City to speak before the Bacolod City (Host) Lions Club on Saturday.

Enrile, who is running for the Senate under the United Nationalist Alliance of Vice President Jejomar Binay, said that if he wins he will continue to champion to the cause of the more marginalized sector, and agricultural development to ensure the country’s capacity to feed the Filipino people.

His name along with that of Senator Loran Legarda has also been submitted by the NPC to the Liberal Party for inclusion in the administration ticket, Enrile said, but he does not know how the NPC-LP talks will turn out.

Enrile said there is a need to protect the sugar industry, but the problem is that the Philippines signed up for trade liberalization without putting up the proper safeguards, especially for the agricultural sector.

The government must adopt an agriculture-first policy in the country and provide the maximum amount of support for farmers, he added.

He refused to comment on the brewing political showdown between Gov. Alfredo Marañon Jr. and Vice Gov. Genaro Alvarez Jr. for governor in 2013, saying both of them are friends.*CPG

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