Bacolod City – Replaced Sugar Regulatory Administration board member Aurelio Gerardo Valderrama and Negros Occidental Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson have rallied for support to the newly-designated, all-Negrense SRA officials.
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. appointed David John Thaddeus Alba as acting SRA administrator and Pablo Luis Azcona and Ma. Mitzi Mangwag as members of the Sugar Board.
Azcona, who is affiliated with United Sugar Producers Federation (UNIFED), replaced Aurelio Gerardo “Bodie” Valderrama, in representing planters in the Sugar Board. Mangwag, on the other hand, replaced sugar millers representative Roland Beltran, who resigned for health reasons.
In a statement, Valderrama said. “I am also pleased that the planters’ representative is from Negros and someone who is also relentless in fighting for the rights of planters.” At the same time, he also assured of his cooperation in the investigation to be conducted by Congress on the sugar order that caused his replacement.
Prior to his designation, Alba served as the general manager of the Asociacion de Agricultores de La Carlota y Pontevedra (AALCPI), a group of sugar farmers in the country with 11,000 sugar farmer-members based in Negros Occidental.
Mangwag was the resident manager of Universal Robina Corp.’s sugar division Cagayan Robina Sugar Milling Co.
Alba thanked Marcos for appointing him and the other members of the board. “At least now, the SRA has a board that can start working already because the sugar industry is faced with a lot of problems,” Alba said.
He also asked SRA personnel to provide the board with accurate data, especially on the country’s sugar supply, particularly because sugar mills have begun operations and inventory data is important.
At the onset, I was very clear that I serve at the pleasure of the President. As a representative of planters, I have one objective, and that is the best welfare of the stakeholders of the sugar industry. I thank all the planters who supported me in this endeavor, and I call on everyone to support the new Board of Directors and the President,” Valderrama said in a statement
“Let’s give them our support,” Lacson called on the stakeholders of the sugar industry.
Lacson, Vice Gov. Jeffrey Ferrer, the Personal Adviser for Western Visayas of President Marcos Jr, Senate president Juan Miguel Zubiri and other Negros solons have been pushing for a Negrense to head the SRA. (Gilbert Bayoran via The Visayan Daily Star, photo courtesy of Digicast)