Labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) today said that the recent survey of Social Weather Station (SWS) indicating record high figures of nationwide hunger incidence is directly related to very low wages of ordinary workers as well as the unabated rise in unemployment.

“No jobs or with very little wages, Filipinos can barely survive day to day life. Most workers are lucky enough to have instant noodles, tuyo (dried fish) and rice as their staple food,” said KMU Secretary General Joel Maglunsod.

Based on the recent SWS survey, almost 2.9 million Filipino families have nothing to eat. “With this deteriorating condition, it seems that the dead is better off than the living,” Maglunsod said.

“The increasing hunger incidence will continue to worsen as long as the Arroyo government refuses to address the long overdue demand of workers for the P125 across-the-board wage increase for workers. Furthermore, instead of resolving the increasing inflation rate, Malacanang continue to condone giant oil companies that manipulate oil prices as well as the escalating prices of basic goods, commodities and services in the market,” the labor leader said.

“While Mindanao is a region very rich in natural resources, for it to have the highest hunger incidence in the country is the height of irony. Major lucrative industries can be found in Mindanao including multinational companies in food production like Dole Philippines, Del Monte Inc., fruit and vegetable plantations, abaca plantation, fisheries, tuna export industries, logging, mining and other major export processing zones.”

The labor leader explained that Mindanao workers, particularly those in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao provinces (ARMM) like Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and Marawi City receive the lowest minimum wage across the country with only a meager Php 180 daily wage as compared to the sky-high daily cost of living in ARMM amounting to nearly Php 800.

He also noted that the reported increasing obesity among Filipinos is a minor incident compared to the prevalent and lingering hunger experienced by the majority of the population.