The government decision to allow the importation of an additional 132,000 metric tons (MT) of rice was laudable but came late, Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles said Thursday.
Nograles, chair of the House appropriations committee, welcomed the National Food Authority (NFA) Council鈥檚 approval of the importation to stabilize soaring rice prices across the country.
But the lawmaker lamented that the action should have been taken earlier to prevent rice prices from getting out of hand.
鈥淎s the saying goes, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure,鈥� Nograles said in a statement.
The NFA Council said the 132,000 MT of rice would go to the Zambasulta region鈥擹amboanga, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi鈥攖o solve the rice crisis there.
A shortage of 鈥渃heap鈥� NFA rice in the region led local governments to聽 declare a state of calamity in Zamboanga City and Tawi-Tawi. Prices of commercial rice聽 shot up to P80 a kilogram in Tawi-Tawi.
Smuggling
A confluence of events鈥攁 crackdown on smuggling of rice from Malaysia, depleted NFA supply and the onset of the lean months鈥攔esulted in the rice crisis in the region.
It may take two months after the bidding before the imports arrive in the country, according to Agriculture Secretary Emmanuel Pi帽ol.
In the meantime, Pi帽ol said Wednesday, the government would fast-track the arrival of an initial batch.
鈥淭he first 32,000 MT will be delivered after its procurement process is completed in 15 to 20 days and that will be good for two months,鈥� said the secretary, who also heads the NFA Council.
The NFA said in a statement on Thursday that it was supplying more than half of Zamboanga鈥檚 rice requirements, with about 2,000 bags of rice being deployed to markets every day. Rice variants provided by the agency are retailed at P27 to P32 a kilo, depending on quality.
Nograles said the NFA Council should have foreseen the problem when NFA rice stocks were depleted.
鈥楧isturbing trend鈥�
According to him, NFA rice stocks in the first half of the year showed 鈥渁 disturbing trend鈥� that should have prompted 鈥渋mmediate鈥� action.
He cited the NFA rice stock inventory records on the agency鈥檚 website, which showed that in January the NFA had 107,200 MT of rice, which dropped to 60,300 MT in February, to 43,500 MT in March, to 12,200 MT in April, to 3,900 MT in May, and finally, to 2,100 MT in June.
These figures, the congressman said, were way below the 15-day buffer鈥攅quivalent to 400,000 MT鈥攖hat the NFA was mandated to maintain during nonlean months.
鈥淲hen the lean months come in, which will be from June to September, their stock is only 2,000 MT. What did they do? This is one of the questions we will be asking NFA (officials) when they face the appropriations committee on Monday,鈥� Nograles said.
Lift quotas
House Majority Leader Rolando Andaya Jr. called for long-term but effective solutions to avoid a repeat of what he described as the 鈥渢urbulence鈥� rocking the rice sector.
鈥淭he sooner we institutionalize a rules-based system of importing rice, the better. That鈥檚 the only way of legally bringing in rice, all other methods are smuggling,鈥� Andaya said in a statement.
The chamber recently passed the rice tarrification bill. Andaya said the Senate should do the same but added that replacing quantitative import restrictions with duties was only one of the ways to make rice affordable and abundant.
The 200,000 bags of rice imported from Thailand that arrived at the port of Tabaco City two weeks ago are ready for discharge from the MV Emperor 1 and distribution to consumers in Bicol after the seven-day fumigation and 24-hour aeration.
The rice, which was initially found to be infested with weevils (鈥渂ukbok鈥�), is now cleared of pests, according to the Bureau of Plant Industry (BPI) Quarantine Service.
Phosphine tablets were used to fumigate the rice, said Danilo Doblon, regional manager of the BPI Quarantine Service. The tablets melted and turned into gas, eliminating the pests.
鈥楾errible鈥� performance
In the Senate, Sen. Joel Villanueva rated Pi帽ol鈥檚 performance as 鈥渢errible鈥� after the latter suggested legalizing rice smuggling in some parts of Mindanao to ease the rice crisis.
The senator took exception to the agriculture chief鈥檚 statement that the government鈥檚 move against smuggling had resulted in the rice shortage in certain areas.
There have been calls for Pi帽ol and NFA Administrator Jason Aquino to resign because of the rice crisis. Others also want the NFA abolished.
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said the agriculture secretary still enjoyed the trust and confidence of President Duterte. 鈥擱EPORTS FROM JEROME ANING, KARL R. OCAMPO, MAILA AGER, CHRISTINE O. AVENDA脩O AND MICHAEL JAUCIAN