Senator Kiko Pangilinan opened Monday’s Senate hearing on the smuggling of agricultural products by highlighting the start of the 60-day rice import ban. “Let’s keep a close watch on the smugglers because they might be very busy preparing to slip in their rice products due to this ban,” he said.
The lawmaker warned that when cheap and unsafe imports enter local markets, both farmers and consumers suffer as palay prices collapse and households struggle. The hearing sought to strengthen oversight under Republic Act 12022, or the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Act of 2024.
The law broadens the definition of economic sabotage to cover hoarding, profiteering, and other manipulative acts involving government officials. It imposes the harshest penalties, including life imprisonment and fines of up to five times the value of the smuggled goods.
“Why is the law harsh? Why is it as severe as the punishment for plunderers, human traffickers, or drug lords? Because like plunderers, smugglers destroy our economy. And like human traffickers and drug lords, they undermine law enforcement and ruin the lives of our fellow citizens,” Pangilinan said.
RA 12022 created the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Council to oversee enforcement, authorize inspections, and declare abnormal supply situations. An enforcement group under the law is empowered to inspect warehouses, seize contraband, and file criminal charges against violators.
Pangilinan cited recent seizures, including P34 million worth of Chinese agricultural products in July, P100 million of smuggled goods the same month, and P66 million of vegetables from 17 containers. He criticized the slow pace of prosecutions, noting that despite President Marcos Jr.’s December 2024 directive to dismantle smuggling networks, no major arrests have been made.
“There are many similarities between the recurring floods in Metro Manila and the food crisis. Aside from being rooted in corruption and injustice, both flooding and the food crisis severely burden the ordinary Filipino,” Pangilinan said.
Senator Risa Hontiveros, meanwhile, noted that last year’s tariff cuts made the Philippines the world’s top rice importer, forcing farmers to sell below production cost. She welcomed the 60-day import suspension but called it insufficient, urging immediate tariff hikes to protect local producers.
“The import ban and the tariff increase are not opposing measures, they complement each other. Only by doing both can we stabilize farmgate prices and finally give our farmers the fair fighting chance they deserve,” Hontiveros said.
