(Eagle News) — Senator Cynthia Villar, chair of Senate committee on agriculture and food on Tuesday, August 28 urged President Rodrigo Duterte to set a ceiling on prices of rice in the country.
This came in the wake of continuous increase in the prices of rice in the market.
Villar said the President can declare a state of calamity under the provision of Republic Act 7581 or the Price Act that could control and stabilize the prices of basic necessities and prime commodities.
“I think we should impose price control because rice is a political crop. Everyone eats rice. It’s very important to Filipinos,” said Villar.
Meanwhile, Davao Congressman Karlo Nograles has challenged National Food Authority (NFA) administrator Jason Aquino to step down if he cannot address rising rice prices as well as the lack of government-subsidized rice in the market.
Nograles, who chairs the House committee on appropriations, discovered that the supply of NFA rice in Region 10 was diverted to Region 9 to address the rice crisis in Zamboanga, Sibugay.
“According to the retailers I talked to, ‘yung dating supply na 100 sacks per week ng NFA rice sa mga outlets ng palengke, ngayon naging 25 sacks per week na lang. Dahil dito halos nag-aaway at nag-aagawan ng NFA rice sa merkado pag meron dumadating na NFA rice and obviously mabilis maubos,” he said.
Nograles said that Aquino, as NFA administrator, should take responsibility for this.
“NFA should work double-time to replenish stocks of NFA rice in Cagayan De Oro and around the country to stabilize rice prices, which is their mandate. The leadership of the NFA has to take responsibility and act on this soon. Either step up and take action––or step down,” he said. (Meanne Corvera)