THE Department of Trade and Industry- Davao Region (DTI-Davao) welcomes the plan to reactivate the price monitoring committee of Davao City as it could help them monitor the prices of goods in the market.
“We welcome this, with the help of LGU (Local Government Unit) at least mapapadali ‘yong monitoring ng DTI (the monitoring of DTI will be more efficient),” Atty. Diane Bay Grado, Legal Officer III of DTI-Davao, said during the Kapehan sa Dabaw on October 17, 2022.
Earlier, Councilor Pilar Braga, chairperson of the committee on education, science and technology, arts and culture, during the 14th regular session of the 20th council proposed the reactivation of the price monitoring committee to monitor the prices of goods in the city.
“We have been receiving complaints in the marketplace like the underweighing of rice. Ang isa ka sako nga bugas nga 50 kilograms (one sack of rice is 50kg), [but] many consumers [are] complaining that one sack of rice, they are not exactly getting the 50kg,” Braga said.
Braga said the price monitoring committee was created under the leadership of former Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte through Executive Order (EO) No. 23 series of 2018, an order creating the rice supply and price monitoring committee, providing for its powers and functions, and for other purposes.
“It is necessary to establish a committee to oversee the supply and price of rice in order to maintain price stability and prevent the harmful impacts of an unchecked and unmonitored rise in rice prices in the City,” EO states.
The EO aims to monitor and regulate the price of the goods with a just, reasonable and affordable pricing.
However, Grado said, the reactivation of the price monitoring committee can only be activated once a city is in the state of calamity.
“Actually pag may sakuna or state of emergency ina-activate yong committee on price monitoring, kasi ang basis niyan is the Price Act, so everytime may bagyo, usually ‘yon ‘yong start ng price monitoring ng committee, pag wala naman in-active yong committee (We can only activate this committee if there is a state of emergency in the city since this is based on the Price Act, if there’s none, then it will be inactive),” Grado said.
Meanwhile, Braga said the committee is composed of the City Agriculturist Office, Department of Trade and Industry, National Bureau of Investigation, Philippine National Police (PNP) and other agencies related to price monitoring. KSD