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Friday, March 28, 2008
Congress eyes measures to address rice crisis
MANILA -- The Senate and the House of Representatives are reviewing existing laws that seek to impose harsher penalties against profiteers and reform the country's importation procedures amid the looming rice crisis.
House Speaker Prospero Nograles called for a review of the Price Act with the end view of imposing harsher penalties for hoarding and profiteering to fight the continuing rise in the prices of rice.
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Senate President Manuel Villar filed a bill that proposes the use of the National Food Authority (NFA) funds for the purchase of locally produced palay and authorizes farmer cooperatives to take care of rice importation.
Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap said the government was looking to buy 1.8 million tons to 2.2 million tons of rice for this year, up from an earlier 1.6-1.8 million tons as it tries to secure supplies amid soaring prices.
Prices of commercial rice range from P26 to P33 a kilo. Rice from the NFA sells for P18.25 a kilo.
"It's time we revisit Republic Act (RA) 7581 or the Price Act to determine how to further discourage, if not totally end, illegal acts of manipulating the prices of any basic commodity especially during such time that government is dealing with the continuing rise in the prices of rice and even fuel," Nograles said.
Nograles also said the looming rice shortage gives Congress all the reason "to study how to add teeth to the law to fully deter price manipulation."
"While there is now a bold move by government to investigate, watch and re-license warehouses of the National Food Authority (NFA), we should also think of long-term measures that will discourage traders from resorting to illegal acts of price manipulation," he said.
Section 15 of RA 7581 states that any person who commits price manipulation of any basic necessity or commodity shall suffer the penalty of imprisonment for a period of not less than five years nor more than 15 years, and pay the penalty of not less than P5,000 nor more than P2,000,000.
Section 5 of the Price Act considers hoarding, profiteering, and cartel formation as among the illegal acts tied to the manipulation of the price of any basic necessity or prime commodity.
It prohibits any person habitually engaged in the production, manufacture, importation, storage, transport, distribution, sale or other methods of disposition of goods to engage in such acts.
The Speaker said there is also a need to review the cases of individuals penalized for violating the law during emergency and ordinary times since RA 7581 was enacted in 1992 to guide the conduct of the congressional review.
Villar in a bill he filed seeks to stop the NFA monopoly in rice importation.
"This exclusivity clause that authorizes only the NFA to import rice has to be repealed. Attended by allegations of corruption, the system no longer works and has to be reformed to include other sectors of society," Villar said.
He said the authority of importing rice should be given to farmer cooperatives and organizations as "a way to increase their income."
"The farming sector has always been at the receiving end of any importation as this tends to dampen or lower the price of palay (rice grain) resulting in no or low income for our farmers. If their collective organization is given the privilege of doing rice importation, they are given an opportunity to earn additional income," the lawmaker said.
"The measure also proposes to put NFA funds to use only in purchasing locally produced palay or farmer imports for food security requirements of the country," he added.
He said farmers have lost the incentive to plant rice because of low profitability and high price of farm inputs such as fertilizers and pesticides.
He said the bill he proposes aims to increase farmer benefits.
The bill also mandates food agency to use its funds to procure locally-produced palay from the local farming community in order to further motivate the farmers to increase their productivity.
"The government keeps on harping on economic growth. This measure intends to bring the benefits of economic gains directly to the people and make these government pronouncements believable. This will instill reform to the neglected agricultural sector where still a majority of Filipinos belong," he said.
With the country plagued by a looming rice crisis, Villar appealed to parties involved in the rice business not to take advantage of the situation and ensure that price of rice remains stable and realistic. (CPB/WV/Sunnex)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro. (March 28, 2008 issue)
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