House leaders on Wednesday urged the Senate to help ease the burden on Filipinos grappling with high rice prices by passing the proposed amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL).
Deputy Speaker and Quezon Rep. David Suarez expressed confidence the Senate would be able to act on the RTL amendment bill, which provides safety nets to stabilize rice prices and ensure the viability of the local rice industry.
With rice prices steadily increasing, Suarez stressed the need for government intervention to curb excessive price hikes.
“If we don’t do government intervention, that will serve as some sort of competition to the traders and the importers of rice. There won’t be a regulatory function or a balancing activity to be done by government,” Suarez said at a news conference.
He underscored the crucial role of government regulation on maintaining stability in the rice market.
Last Tuesday, the House of Representatives approved on second reading House Bill (HB) 10381, which allows the National Food Authority (NFA) to sell subsidized rice to address exigencies like shortages of the cereal.
The bill also extends the validity period for the Rice Competitiveness Enhancement Fund or RCEF for six more years and raises its budget from P10 billion to P15 billion.
Congress is expected to approve the bill on third and final reading before adjourning next week.
Some senators have opposed the bill due to concerns about the NFA regaining authority to sell and import rice, citing past corruption allegations.
While acknowledging concerns about corruption within the NFA, Suarez urged senators not to lose sight of the primary objective, which is ensuring food security and affordable rice prices for all Filipinos.
“I totally understand where the senators are coming from given the recent reputation of certain NFA officials, but let’s not forget this is not an issue of corruption, but rather an issue of food security and price of rice,” Suarez pointed out.
Further addressing allegations of corruption and anomalies within the NFA, Suarez expressed confidence in the government’s ability to investigate and prosecute wrongdoings.
“Pagdating naman po sa corruption at mga alleged anomalies na nangyari sa NFA (When it comes to corruption and the alleged anomalies that happened in the NFA), I’m sure the proper agencies of the government can look into this, can persecute them to put them behind bars,” he said, adding that Congress can also exercise its oversight functions to deal with corruption issues.
In the same press conference, House Deputy Majority Leader and Tingog party-list Rep. Jude Acidre cited the urgent need for Senate collaboration to address the pressing issue of rising rice prices, which continues to burden Filipino households.
“Palagi po nating naririnig ang mga kaibigan natin sa Senado na paulit-ulit, sinasabi po nila na ang mga problema ng ating bansang dapat bigyan ng solusyon ay ang patuloy na pagtaas ng presyo ng bilihin lalo na ng bigas (We always hear our friends in the Senate repeatedly saying that the problem of our country that must be solved is the constant increase in the price of goods, especially rice) ,” said Acidre, chairman of the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs.
“I think the passage of the RTL especially on the part of the Senate is an important step for them to prove na sila din ay kaisa sa paggawa ng solusyon (to prove that they are also united in making a solution,” he added.
Acidre also said that on the part of the House, it has taken a proactive stance of amending the RTL in order to stabilize rice prices, especially during inflation.
“Clearly, this would ensure that there’s a built-in mechanism for competition when prices are rising. Nandyan ang NFA para magkaroon ng access ‘yung ating ating mga kababayan sa mas murang bigas (There is the NFA for the people to have access to affordable rice),” Acidre said.
As the second regular session of the 19th Congress approaches conclusion, Acidre appealed to senators to prioritize the welfare of the people by supporting and passing the RTL amendment bill.
“I hope that the Senate will join us, especially we have three more session days to go before we go on break for sine die. I hope that our senators, we appeal to their sense of empathy for the people in ensuring ultimately that there is food on the table of every Filipino family,” Acidre said.
For his part, Lanao del Norte Rep. Mohamad Khalid Dimaporo, chairman of the House Committee on Muslim Affairs, said the RTL amendment bill is consistent with the objective of Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez to strike a balance between supporting farmers and ensuring affordable rice prices for all Filipinos.
“What I believe our leadership here in the House is trying to do is to balance things out, make sure that the farmers are not negatively affected and at the same time also ensure that the price of rice is affordable for our countrymen,” Dimaporo said.
The chairman of the House Committee on Muslim Affairs said the proposed amendments are attuned with goals outlined by President Marcos in terms of ensuring affordability and price control for rice.
“I think the amendments that are being introduced to the plenary is exactly what our President wants—make price affordable and make the price of rice controllable,” he said.
“And if we need NFA for that, I think the Senate should come up with a better alternative,” he suggested.
