MANILA: The Department of Agriculture (DA) has proposed during the National Price Coordinating Council (NPCC) meeting a maximum of 10 days buffer stock of agricultural products to counter illegal price manipulation.
In a press conference after the NPCC meeting at the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) office in Makati City Monday, Assistant Secretary for Consumer Protection Group Amanda Nograles said the DA proposal for buffer stocking is a mechanism to stabilize prices of commodities by increasing the supply of these products to decrease their prices.
Nograles said the DA is eyeing the stockpiling of rice, corn, sugar, onion, pork, and fertilizers.
To activate this mechanism in the future, Nograles said the DA is crafting implementing rules and regulations (IRR).
She clarified that there is no clear declaration yet that this will be implemented immediately, adding that the IRR may indicate what could be the situation to trigger the government to utilize this mechanism.
‘This will deter hoarders and
those who are engaged in illegal price manipulation because they will think that if we have the buffer stock, the government can intervene anytime and it will be deterrent for illegal price manipulation,’ she said.
The DTI official noted that this will be the first time for the DA to invoke the provision of the Price Act on buffer stocking.
Section 9 of Republic Act 7581, or the Price Act, allows ‘the implementing agency to procure, purchase, import, or stockpile any basic necessity or prime commodity, devise ways and means of distributing them for sale at reasonable prices in areas where there is shortage of supply or a need to effect changes in its prevailing price.’
DTI Undersecretary Jose Edgardo Sunico added that the DA is eyeing a maximum stockpiling of 10 days for the said commodities, which is enough period to stabilize the prices of these agricultural products in the future.
‘The DTI Secretary (Alfredo Pascual) has welcomed the initiative coming from DA. At least we have the mechanism to help in
addressing inflation. This is one of them, one of the proposals,’ Sunico said.
Source: Philippines News Agency