The National Food Authority (NFA) council appointed Department of Agriculture director IV Larry Lacson as officer-in-charge of the agency, following a spate of intense changes in the agency.
Agriculture secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel announced the appointment of the new NFA OIC in a meeting Monday.
“The NFA Council has unanimously appointed Director Larry Lacson as OIC-Administrator to make sure the operations of the agency runs smoothly, especially during this harvest season. The NFA is an integral part of our effort to ensure the country’s food security,” he said.
Lacson has extensive experience in both the private sector and in government. He is a member of Philippine Food Expo, Inc. (PhilFoodex) and a former co-chairman of the agriculture and fisheries committee of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He was also a former director of the Bureau of Plant Industry.
His degree in Agricultural Science will help ensure the smooth operation of the NFA.
Despite lifting the suspension of the 24 NFA employees, the agency remains largely undermanned with over a hundred more still in suspension due to the price fixing fiasco within the agency.
The Office of the Ombudsman has placed under preventive suspension a total of 141 NFA officials and employees including several warehouse managers while the investigation is ongoing.
The DA is hoping to resolve the issue soonest as rice procurement and disposition is the most important role of the NFA.
NFA is mandated to procure 300,000 metric tons of palay annually as buffer stock for the lean season and standby inventory during calamities.