CAGAYAN de Oro City officials will meet with officials of the National Food Authority (NFA) this week to shed light on what exactly is causing the increasing prices of rice in markets here and how to address the problem immediately.
Lawyer Edgardo “Egay” Uy, chairman of the City Price Coordinating Council (CPCC) said he has doubts if indeed supply of NFA rice is stable as what the NFA claims, as this does not reflect the situation in the market.
"They have to act on their mandate to stabilize supply. They need to tell us the reality and their own assessment because if supply is stable, it should reflect the prices of the market," he said.
Uy said there might be a particular issue that has not been addressed, causing large spike of rice prices.
He however clarified that although the CPCC monitors increased prices, Cagayan de Oro is not under rice crisis unlike other areas in Mindanao. Last month, Zamboanga City and Isabela City in Basilan declared a state of calamity, citing the high prices of rice.
"It's unlikely to happen here. We have been in this situation early this year in February, but the difference is that the NFA actually declared shortage last February, now the NFA did not declare shortage," he said.
He adds the CPCC is also looking forward to collaborate with the NFA to see if there are reports on alleged rice hoarding that might have influenced rice prices.
"But now there are no reports on rice hoarding, but the NFA need to look into that also because they have the firsthand authority," he added.