A GROUP has challenged the Department of Agriculture (DA) to help farmers in order to prevent a looming increase in the prices of rice.
The Anakpawis partylist claimed that DA has negelected the farmers' plea as early as August last year.
The group issued the statement recently after the agency reportedly claimed that prices of rice may increase by the end of the year due to rising costs in fuel and fertilizers.
The Anakpawis Party-list said the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas and Amihan National Federation of Peasant Women have been asking the government to control the prices of fertilizer and oil products.
The farmers are also asking for adequate subsidies to pull down costs fro help from possible bankruptcies, according to the group.
"Matagal nang sinisigaw ng mga magsasaka na tumataas ang gastos sa abono at produktong langis, pero ngayon umaastang concerned ang DA, na siya naman ang hindi pumansin sa mga lehitimong isyung ito," Anakpawis partylist president Ariel Casilao said.
"Pagkalipas pa lang ng lockdown noong 2020, nanawagan na ng subsidyo ang mga magsasaka dahil nga nalugi sila noon at hindi naibenta ang mga produkto bukod pa sa matinding hambalos ng Rice Liberalization Law na nagpabaha ng imported na bigas, at nagpabagsak sa farm gate price ng palay," he added.
In August last year, KMP said that prices of Triple 14 fertilizer in Nueva Ecija increased by P200 to P250 per bag, to P1,500.
In February, Amihan said that prices of urea in Pampanga used to be P920 per bag in August, increased to
P1,600 by November and in December to P2,600 per bag.
KMP reported an increase of P8,000 additional costs due to incessant oil price hikes, mainly for land preparation and irrigation.
Casilao said that if DA is really concerned about rising costs in palay production, it should decisively call for the repeal of the Republic Act 11203 Rice Liberalization Law, and liberalization policies in agriculture to stabilize prices of inputs and farm gate prices.
He said that the House Bill 477 Rice Industry Development Act aimed to concretely stabilize retail and farm gate prices of palay and rice, as well as to attain national food security and self-sufficiency.
The bill was proposing the allotment of P495 billion for its “Three-Year Implementation Plan” composed of rice production socialized credit program with P25 billion allocation;
accelerated irrigation development program with P45 billion and P20 billion for rehabilitation and repair; post-harvest facilities development program with P30 billion;
farm inputs support program with P50 billion; research and development and extension services program with P15 billion; and P310 billion allocation for National Food Authority’s (NFA) local procurement program.
The bill, he added, also calls the NFA to purchase palay from farmers starting at P20 per kilo, at its subsidized retailing to keep prices at P25 per kilo.
The bill, if enacted, would repeal the Rice Liberalization Law, according to Casilao.