GE15: Farmers' welfare main focus of two candidates in Jerlun

JERLUN: Resolving issues related to the rights and welfare of farmers in Kedah, especially in Jerlun, is the main focus of two candidates contesting for the parliamentary seat in the 15th General Election (GE15).

Pejuang president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Tun Mahathir claimed that a majority of farmers in the state were in a dire situation because their yields were decreasing every year.

The incumbent Jerlun Member of Parliament also described the situation as 'the perfect storm' when climate change and administration issues occurred simultaneously, causing farmers' income to plummet.

"For example, the prices of padi inputs such as fertilisers, seeds and pesticides are increasing. As a result, the cost of producing padi has risen so significantly, and this has nothing to do with the weather.

"Weather is one thing, but this is about how the authorities manage the sector, and this is what has been burdening the farmers. If the income of fishermen decreases, they are given subsistence allowance, but not farmers," he told reporters during a campaign round in Kampung Wang here today.

In this regard, Mukhriz, who is also former Kedah Menteri Besar, proposed that subsidies be given directly to farmers and not suppliers of agricultural inputs, to enable the group to survive.

Meanwhile, Datuk Othman Aziz representing Barisan Nasional, said farmer-related issues are often brought to him as the community depends heavily on agriculture to make a living.

Apart from the unpredictable weather conditions due to global climate change, he said irregular irrigation and drainage system maintenance would also cause the soil to become too soft, thus making the rice harvesting process difficult.

"As the water cannot be drained out quickly and stays in the padi fields for too long, the hard soil becomes soft and causes problems for the harvesting machine to harvest rice," he said.

He stressed that if immediate action is not taken to address the problem, it will affect the income of about 90 per cent of the constituency's people involved in the rice production industry.

There will be a four-cornered fight in the Jerlun parliamentary seat involving Mukhriz, Othman and two other candidates, namely Dr Abd Ghani Ahmad of Perikatan Nasional and Dr Mohamed Fadzil Mohd Ali of Pakatan Harapan.

-- BERNAMA