TUGUEGARAO CITY—The National Irrigation Administration in Region 2 has urged farmers to pay their irrigation service fee arrears.
Engineer Antonio Lara, NIA regional director, said while the Duterte administration has already issued an order to provide free irrigation services for farmers starting this year’s cropping season through a P2-billion subsidy in the 2017 national budget, but reminded the farmers to settle their unpaid fees.
“Although the irrigation fee is now free, our farmers must settle their debts. We will still collect from those who have not yet paid their arrears,” Lara said.
Earlier, farmers’ organizations regionwide lobbied for the abolition of irrigation service fees and the condonation of unpaid back accounts of farmers and irrigators associations that have incurred millions in debt to NIA.