Ang Probinsyano Party-list Representative Alfred delos Santos on Wednesday threw his support to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s move to impose price ceilings on rice as it puts a “quick stop” to the escalating rice prices in the market. “I support the issuance of Executive Order 39 as it steps on the brakes to put a quick stop to price escalation of the most common types of rice for household consumption,” Delos Santos said in a statement. Delos Santos said the executive order is a calibrated response because it spares small farmers, indigenous communities, and entrepreneurs of micro, small and medium enterprises who produce specialty rice. He, however, said he would have to look into the impact of EO 39 on the vendors of rice delicacies like bibingka, puto, palitaw and sapin-sapin. “It is probable the retailers and manufacturers of these rice delicacies will switch to using regular milled rice for kakanin (native delicacies) sold in public markets, while rice cakes of the premium kinds would likely use rice flour, specialty rice, and special rice,” he said. Delos Santos assured that his party-list organization would remain vigilant of any price escalation to ensure Filipinos will not have difficulty “putting rice onto their tables.” Under Executive Order (EO) 39, inked by Marcos on Aug. 31, the mandated price ceiling for regular milled rice is PHP41 per kg., while the mandated price cap for well-milled rice is PHP45 per kg. The joint recommendation of the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Department of Trade of Industry (DTI) to impose a rice price ceiling aims to ensure that the staple is ‘reasonably priced and conveniently accessible’ to Filipinos, according to EO 39. Speaker Martin Romualdez has directed House Committee on Appropriations chair Elizaldy Co to find ways to allocate PHP2 billion in the 2023 national budget to help rice retailers affected by the mandated price ceilings on staple food. Romualdez said he has instructed Co to coordinate with the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) for the said allocation. ‘Our goal is to ensure that we can extend assistance to rice retailers who may be affected by this rice price ceiling, as it is a directive from our President aimed at protecting consumers,’ Romualdez said. Under EO 39, the DA and DTI reported ‘widespread practice of alleged illegal price manipulation, such as hoarding by opportunistic traders and collusion among industry cartels in light of the lean season.’ In his second State of the Nation Address (SONA), President Marcos said his administration would go after these rice cartels and hoarders.
Source: Philippines News Agency