Rice prices up; kickback probe set

MANILA, Philippines - Rice prices are going up, rising by P2 per kilo in public markets in Bulacan and by P3 to P4 per kilo in Pampanga, amid reports that cartels are creating an artificial rice shortage.

At the House of Representatives, lawmakers are set to investigate an alleged P457-million rice import kickback involving officials of the National Food Authority (NFA) and the Department of Agriculture (DA).

NFA spokesman Rex Estoperez said yesterday the agency welcomes any investigation “as long as it is not in aid of persecution.”

“We have the data and records to support our claims. There is no such thing as bloating the figure of our rice stocks,” Estoperez said.

Farmers in Bulacan called on the NFA and other government agencies to go after rice cartels causing the artificial shortage of rice.

Melencio Domingo, Malolos City Agriculture and Fisheries Council head, said some unscrupulous businessmen are hoarding rice and causing the artificial shortage.

“There is no rice shortage, because we have enough supply of rice,” he said in Filipino. “What we have is artificial rice shortage.”

Domingo said the supply of rice is enough as local farmers had a good harvest the past cropping season.

“Instead of denying that there is rice shortage, the NFA and other government agencies should go after rice cartels who are hoarding their rice inventories,” he said.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) said the other day the retail price of rice was pegged at P35 to P37 per kilo, up from P32 to P34 per kilo during the first round of price increases in early July.

KMP secretary-general Antonio Flores said the DA’s inaction and ineptitude are to blame.

“The price of rice is steadily increasing for almost two months now and the DA has done nothing to pull down, stabilize, and control prices,” he said.

Flores said the government seems helpless against the rice cartels.

“There has been no solution proposed and the Aquino administration has proved inutile against the series of increases,” he said.

Flores said the lame excuse of Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala serves the interest of rice cartels.

“In the face of all these, all we can hear from Alcala and his officials is that the country has enough supply of rice and that the increase should not exceed P1 to P2 due to the lean months,” he said.

“The Aquino administration has turned the DA into a symbol of national shame. It is filled with corrupt and inept officials.”

Domingo said raiding rice mills in Bocaue and other towns in Bulacan is not enough.

Authorities must also check warehouses in other nearby areas of Metro Manila, he added.

Domingo said as early as last summer, rice traders have been buying up harvested rice.

“They have the rice, now the question is, where they are keeping their rice inventories,” he said.

Domingo said the NFA must hike the farm gate price of rice to P20 per kilo.

The NFA is currently offering P17 per kilo for class A rice, he added.

Flores said last week’s report on the artificial palay shortage was obviously meant to justify rice price increases and massive importation of the grain.

“The artificial palay shortage and the rice price increases clearly demonstrate the manipulations by rice cartels to justify a massive and corruption-tainted rice importation policy,” he said.

Flores said in Isabela and Pangasinan, the buying price of traders for newly harvested or wet palay is P16-17 per kilo, and for dry palay P20-22 per kilo.

“The high prices of dry palay in Pangasinan and Isabela and the seemingly uniform prices in other regions not only show the disparity in prices but expose the manipulative hands of rice cartels,” he said.

In Bulacan, the price of dry palay is P24 per kilo, he added.

Flores said in Mindoro Occidental, prices of wet palay remain at P12-P14 and dry palay P16.

In Laguna, palay prices remain at P13-P14 per kilo, and in the Visayas and Mindanao, the buying price of palay is still P17 per kilo, he added.

Flores said big landlords, not farmers, are profiting from the P22 to P24 per kilo price of dry palay.

“At present, the bulk of dry palay is centralized in the hands of rice cartels and big landlords,” he said.

“They are the ones capable of hoarding palay and are the main culprits in the skyrocketing prices of rice.”

Flores said the government is allowing 350,000 metric tons of rice to enter the country annually at reduced tariff rate of 40 percent.

“The 187,000 MT imported last April that was allegedly overpriced was under the omnibus MAV for rice,” he said. “The balance of 163,000 MT shall be imported under the MAV-country specific quota as specified under the World Trade Organization agreement.”

Abakada-Guro Rep. Jonathan de la Cruz said the DA and the NFA have a lot of explaining to do as the rice importation of 205,700 metric tons from Vietnam last April was overpriced by at least P457 million.

“First, they reported only 187,000 MT, but apparently another 18,700 MT was imported without the prior approval of the Department of Finance,” he said.

De la Cruz said a check with the Oryza Global Rice price index shows that the purchase was overpriced by at least P2,150 per MT or P457 million for the entire transaction.

“Third, despite repeatedly bragging about rice self-sufficiency, they now intend to import another 700,000 MT by November,” he said.

De la Cruz said the alleged overprice was corroborated by the Ang Gawad Pinoy Consumers Cooperative.

Reports also reached his office about a certain “Buddy R” who allegedly acted as “bagman” for the group behind these anomalous deals, he added.

De la Cruz said he has received information that three days before the rice tender, Buddy R met with NFA administrator Orlan Calayag, a Mr. Guerrero, Mr. Phuong, and Mr. Ngoc at a hotel in Makati on April 1 to cement the deal.

“By Gawad Pinoy’s computations, should the November importations push through, the amount of stolen public funds could reach up to P2 billion,” he said. “That’s enough to hire almost a thousand new teachers, build about 200 new classrooms, buy some 10,000 school desks and chairs, lay out 633 water and sanitation facilities, and procure and distribute more than 200,000 sets of learning materials.” – With Paolo Romero