By Nanette Guadalquiver/PNA
BACOLOD CITY — The transfer of the National Food Authority (NFA)-Negros Occidental provincial office here to Bago City has been approved by the NFA Council (NFAC).
Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Piñol said in his Facebook post on Wednesday that the approval took place during the last meeting of the NFAC held in Malacañang.
The NFA’s new office and buying station will rise on a property beside the provincial government-owned rice processing complex, a facility supported by the Department of Agriculture (DA), located in Barangay Tabunan. The proposed site is about two hectares.
Piñol said Governor Alfredo Marañon Jr. himself formally requested the relocation of the NFA provincial office to Bago City from its current location on Gatuslao Street in Bacolod City.
He added that the provincial government has allocated PHP50 million for the construction of the NFA office building and grains silos.
“The transfer will be done as soon as the new office building is completed,” the DA chief added.
During his visit to Negros Occidental last October, Piñol inspected the proposed area in Barangay Tabunan, together with Provincial Agriculturist Japhet Masculino and NFA-Negros Occidental provincial manager Frisco Canoy.
“I found the place very good. If the NFA Council would approve it, and I think they would, the provincial government has agreed to construct a building for the NFA in the area,” Piñol said in a press conference with Marañon during that visit.
“From my perspective, I am asking why we should maintain a warehouse and office for a grains agency in the middle of the city. We should be where the rice fields are, where the rice farmers are,” he added.
For his part, Marañon earlier said he has been pushing for the transfer of the NFA provincial office for the grains agency to have more space.
He noted that the road beside the NFA building is part of the land sold by the provincial government to property giant Ayala Land Inc., which has ongoing developments in the area.
