By Leonardo Micua

 

FROM where I sit, I can almost feel the angst of rice retailers over Executive Order No. 39 issued by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., that mandated the price ceiling of regular-milled rice at P41 per kilogram, and well-milled rice at P45 per kilogram.

Believing that the E.O. was not well-studied, most rice retailers were in the opinion that the price cap on rice works to their great disadvantage since it requires them to cut their present prices of their rice stocks just to conform with the mandated price ceiling, never mind if they lose.

From Aparri to Jolo, the reaction of retailers was common and almost instantaneous. That as businessmen, they simply cannot sell their present stocks at a loss and lose heavily. And yet, they believe they have no choice but to comply.

Saying they are in business to earn some profit to serve the needs of their families so they were one in the sentiment that the E.O. of Mr. Marcos is a bit revolting and discriminatory, and a violation of their basic rights, they are being asked to lose income so that the poor can live. That’s the job of the government, not they.

In Mangaldan, IFM Radio Dagupan reported that some rice retailers opted to close their stalls on the very day that E.O, 39 went into effect, fearing that if they sell rice at a price beyond the mandated price cap just to break even, they could be charged with economic sabotage.

One retailer lamented how can she sell her rice stock from P41 to P45 pesos per kilo when they paid their regular supplier P1,200 to P1,300 per sack or even more, Then she urged the President, who is also concurrent Agriculture secretary, to order rice suppliers to lower their prices.

In Dagupan, I saw Mayor Belen Fernandez on Facebook keeping watchful eyes on representatives of the DTI, the city’s market division and agriculture office, listing down names of rice retailers and the price tags  on their rice for sale in their boxes.

But whatever reason that caused the friction that developed between BBM and the rice retailers is now considered water under the bridge when he sweetened his E,O. 39 by including a subsidy package for them at P15,000 each, just to ensure that they will sell rice within the mandated price ceiling.

That subsidy package, according to DSWD Secretary Rex Gatchalian, will be delivered to the stalls of the retailers at the earliest possible time based on the list gathered by DTI a condition attached: whoever receives the P15,000 subsidy will be closely monitored by DILG to ensure that they sell their rice stock not exceeding the mandated price cap.

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METHINKS that government regulators will not only monitor rice retailers in the market but rice smugglers, hoarders and price manipulators, they who are in the business of creating artificial shortage of rice and other agri products that always result in spike in prices.

A recent raid by the Bureau of Customs and other government agencies at a warehouse in Bulacan confirmed the existence of big-time rice smugglers hoarding millions of pesos worth of imported rice while many of our people cannot now even eat rice three times a day. There also are the rice cartels who buy and control produce of farmers.

But has anyone heard of a big-time rice smuggler exposed and placed behind bars?

It’s time for BBM to walk the talk and go after the economic saboteurs in one fell swoop they who accumulated much wealth at the expense of the Filipino people.

Recall that the Philippines once attained rice sufficiency and once earned the stature of a rice-exporting country under the administration of then President Ferdinand Edralin Marcos, father of the incumbent president.

And, the rice sufficiency in the country was attained when Arturo Tanco was the  secretary of Agriculture, who, on order of the President, conceived the Masagana 99 rice production program with the help of the miracle rice. 

After Marcos was gone, the Philippines lost its momentum in agriculture and reverted back as a rice importing country despite the fact that some famers began harvesting even more than 200 sacks per hectare.

We cannot achieve rice sufficiency again if BBM remains as the concurrent agriculture secretary. He must relinquish the portfolio to someone who can bring back the glow and sunshine to the farms. This is a must. 

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