DECLARING THE ISLAND OF LUZON AS CALAMITY AREA AS A RESULT OF THE FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE EPIDEMIC, RATIONALIZING PUBLIC SAFETY MEASURES FOR THE ERADICATION OF FOOT AND MOUTH DIS…

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WHEREAS, there has been  a series of reports of outbreak of Foot and
Mouth Disease in the animal industry particularly on swine, cattle, and carabao
in the entire Island of Luzon;

WHEREAS, the Secretary of Agriculture through a Technical Committee created
to look into these reports have confirmed the presence of the said disease in
the entire Island of Luzon;

WHEREAS, the Department of Agriculture has recognized that the alarming
rate of the spread of the disease has reached epidemic proportions; further,
that such a spread must be arrested and prevented from affecting the Visayas
and Mindanao provinces, including Palawan, most of which are now declared
FMD-free zones;

WHEREAS, there is a need to rationalize the functions of the various
government agencies and local government units concerned in the eradication of
the disease from Philippine soil;

WHEREAS, failure to eradicate the disease from the country will greatly
affect the animal industry and the national economy, as it will tend to work
against our global competitiveness in this particular agricultural sector when
the effectivity of World Trade Organization shall have commenced;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL
V. RAMOS, President of the Philippines, by
virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:

SECTION 1. That the entire Island of Luzon be declared as a Calamity Area as a
result of the foot and mouth disease epidemic.

SEC. 2. The initial amount of Twenty Million (P20,000,000.00) pesos be released
from the President’s calamity fund for the initial implementation of this
Order, if the need arises, further fund releases from the calamity fund shall
be allowed upon approval by the Office of the President.

SEC. 3. The Department of Agriculture, through the Bureau of Animal Industry
(BAI), shall coordinate and supervise the implementation of the necessary
preventive and control measures, the monitoring of the presence of the Foot and
Mouth Disease, and the procurement, distribution, and administration of
vaccines to the affected areas of the country.

SEC. 4. All concerned agencies, including local government units, shall
immediately report to the Bureau of Animal Industry any occurrence of the
disease in their respective jurisdiction. They shall provide all necessary
assistance to DA-BAI inspection teams operating within their jurisdiction.
Further, in case a Local Government Units is declared as FMD infected area by
the Department of Agriculture, Ten (10) percent of the contingency fund
allocated from their Internal Revenue Allotment  shall be used for the
procurement of vaccines, drugs and/or biological necessary for the control of
FMD in their respective areas.

SEC. 5. The Department of Agriculture and the Bureau of Animal Industry
shall give priority to backyard animal raisers in the distribution and
administration of vaccines to affected animals and, if possible, give the
vaccines free of charge to backyard farmers/raisers.

SEC. 6. Procurement of the necessary medicines, vaccines, and laboratory equipment,
whether local or made abroad, for the prosecution of the intents of this Order
shall be exempted from payment of tariffs, customs duties, or any other
applicable taxes. For this purpose, a certification from the Director of the
Bureau of Animal Industry indicating that said medicines, vaccines, and/or
equipment shall be used for the eradication of FMD shall be necessary.

SEC. 7. The Secretary of Agriculture shall submit to the President of the
Philippines monthly accomplishment reports, stating the progress of the work
done on the eradication of FMD, further works to be done, recommendations, if
any.

SEC. 8. If any provision of this Executive Order is declared
unconstitutional, the remaining provisions shall remain in force.

SEC. 9. Effectivity. This Executive Order shall take effect immediately
upon approval and shall remain in effect until the Foot and Mouth Disease shall
have been officially declared by the DA-BAI as totally eradicated in the
country.

Done in the City of Manila, this
15^th day of June in the year of Our Lord, nineteen
hundred and ninety five.

(Sgd.) FIDEL
V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines

By the President:

(Sgd.) RUBEN D. TORRES
Executive Secretary

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