Saturday, April 19, 2008 Task Force to monitor rice situation By Erwin Cabarles
GOVERNOR Niel Tupas Sr. will form a task force with representatives from the Department of Agriculture (DA), National Food Authority (NFA) and police to monitor the price and rice stocks in the province.
Tupas and Western Visayas Police Regional Director Isagani Cuevas talked about the plan Thursday.
According to Tupas, he will meet with the heads of DA, NFA, rice millers and traders and other concerned parties on April 22 for the creation of the said task force and the monitoring of the rice situation in the province.
Local government units will also be member of the task force and will be in-charge in monitoring the rice situation in their respective area.
He said the task force would be watching out for those who would take advantage of the situation -- selling rice at an unreasonable price and hoarding rice stocks.
To note, there have been information that some rice millers and rice traders in the province are hoarding rice.
Moreover, there are also reports that some retailers mix the NFA rice with the commercial rice and sell it at a high price, too much for the budget of the poor public. The task force will check the local rice mills for possible hoarding and if there is, appropriate actions will be made to the hoarders.
Tupas said it is important that a task force is created to monitor rice in the market and in the mills, to prevent greedy individuals from taking advantage of the situation and to aid in the problem of high price of rice that is such a burden to majority of the people of the province.
