THE REPORTED re-infestation of the Red-Striped Soft Scale Insect (RSSI) in Negros Occidental, which has once again damaged more than 2,000 hectares of sugarcane farms in various towns and cities, can be considered a glaring “omnishambles” on the part of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA).
The Cambridge Dictionary defines “omnishambles” as a situation that is completely mismanaged.
The term aptly describes the present scenario wherein the SRA, the “powerful” attached agency of the Department of Agriculture (DA), appears to have suffered a significant failure in containing the RSSI outbreak.
But why?
On record, the RSSI invasion in Negros, and later in Panay, began in the early part of 2025.
The insect, scientifically known as Pulvinaria tenuivalvata and first discovered in Egypt in 1992, went on to damage around 3,700 hectares of local sugarcane farms by late August of that year. The damage was estimated at P350 million.
Then came a deafening silence.
Negrenses naturally thought the RSSI invasion in Negros and Panay had already been brought under control. However, as early as May this year, reports of a renewed RSSI rampage once again grabbed headlines.
The latest report from the SRA itself reveals that another 2,200 hectares of sugarcane plantations across 195 barangays in Negros Occidental have been attacked by RSSI, with many areas reportedly beyond saving.
Among the major hotspots identified were:
• Bago City – 406 hectares
• La Castellana – 226 hectares
• Cadiz City – 216 hectares
• Murcia – 193 hectares
QUESTION OF CAPABILITY
The SRA, therefore, cannot escape public scrutiny over its capability to address the pest crisis.
As far as I can recall, the SRA, through its La Granja Agricultural Research and Extension Center (LGAREC) in La Carlota City, Negros Occidental, had already begun breeding and culturing entomopathogenic fungi sourced from Roxas City, Capiz, and Bago City last year.
Of course, the agency spent considerable resources on this initiative, which aimed to propagate the fungi known to be natural enemies of RSSI, particularly Metarhizium anisopliae and Beauveria bassiana.
The questions now are straightforward:
* Why did reinfestation occur?
* What happened to the fungi bred by the SRA?
* Did the SRA ultimately fall short in combating RSSI?
Gosh! This is quite intriguing.
‘KAYA O DI KAYA?’
Let it be known that RSSI is a sap-sucking pest that severely damages sugarcane by draining it of essential nutrients.
Among the most affected is the “pureza,” or the purity and quality of the sugarcane.
So the sixty-four-dollar questions now are:
* Where is the SRA in helping sugar planters, both big and small, amid the RSSI reinfestation?
* Can it still effectively contain this imported pest?
* Or has the SRA become helpless in the face of the problem?
SRA Administrator Paul Luis Azcona must be candid in telling the truth: kaya o di kaya?
Reports of another wave of RSSI-related damage do not reflect well on the SRA.
The current situation seems to suggest that the very agency tasked with leading and protecting the sugar industry has become ineffective in addressing a silent agricultural crisis that continues to harm sugar farms in Negros and Panay.
If the devastation caused by RSSI remains unabated, what future awaits the region’s sugar planters?
‘SEAGULL MANAGER’
I sincerely hope the SRA does not become a “seagull manager” in this particular issue.
Sugar planters need solutions — not excuses.
One cannot help but feel sorry for small sugar planters and agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs), many of whom lack the financial capacity to combat RSSI on their own.
Instead, they remain dependent on the SRA as their “savior” amid the resurgence of these Egypt-originated insects.
The SRA must go beyond issuing press releases. It must clearly communicate to the public the extent of its technical and financial capabilities in addressing the crisis.
Can it not focus its time, resources, and expertise on solving this growing problem?
Moving forward, what the public needs to see is not rhetoric but decisive action that leads to viable and measurable solutions.
The RSSI infestation last year and the reinfestation this year have effectively become a test case for Azcona’s leadership of the SRA./PN
