Villar says lack of action vs cartels is reason rice prices are going up

September 10, 2018

Senator Cynthia Villar scored Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pinol for not pushing for a price ceiling to control rice prices and for not going after cartels which are creating artificial shortage.

When Pinol said are enough, Villar said:" Why are no supplies?  This is due to hoarding or cartel. That's why I am angry. Why are these not controlled?"

Villar asked Pinol why a price ceiling on rice has not been imposed. "I gave the proposal to the economic managers in our last meeting and they said it will not work," said Pinol.

Villar insisted that a price ceiling will work as the law says if the price goes beyond a certain level, "the person doing that can go to jail." She later told reporters in an ambush interview "under the Price Law, DTI ( Department of Trade and Industry) and DA ( Department of Agriculture) can impose price ceiling."

Rice prices in Metro Manila are hitting above P50 and rice supplied by the National Food Administration (NFA), which should be around P40, are in short supply.

Pinol told Senator JV Ejercito that "rice prices will stabilize this November around P40 to P42 because farmgate prices are high.: "If it is any comfort to us, for the time the farmers are saying there are enjoying a very good price for the produce," said Pinol.

Pinol admitted that "speculation" came as rice imports arrived slowly. He proposed that the NFA Council,. which he says the agriculture department is not part of, should import promptly.

Pinol said for 2017 a record harvest of 19.28 million tons of palay were harvested and for 2018, a new record haul of 19.4 million is expected "But we have still have a 7-8 percent shortage in supply and this has to be imported," he said. DMS