Antitrust regulators say hard to prove cartels' involvement in onion price hike
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines’ antitrust watchdog found it hard to prove whether a cartel in the onion industry is indeed alive, noting that the physical evidence could have been sold already.
In a briefing on Monday, the Philippine Competition Commission said that their investigation on whether cartels exist in this industry could wrap up within the year.
“I would think within the year definitely, if it leads to nowhere there’s no use prolonging it. If the evidence is there, it should be within the next 2-3 months at most,” said Michael Aguinaldo, chairperson of the PCC.
“If there is collusion, you have potential liability. You could have the Ombudsman coming in, perhaps they could be included in PCC’s investigation,” Aguinaldo added.
Aguinaldo was newly-installed as the PCC, after having served as chairperson of the Commission on Audit since 2015.
As it is, onions became national headlines when prices started surging towards the end of 2022. House and Senate lawmakers have mounted their own probes, as farmers cited cold storage issues and price increases when their produces reaches markets.
The investigation could hit a wall if no physical evidence turns up. Cartels in this case, would come in the form of rivals coordinating how much supply is released in the market or price fixing, as the PCC said.
That said, the investigation could move forward if evidence materializes, such as text messages. They could also scour evidence in raids at dawn or whether a whistleblower would present them evidence.
The PCC said that inspection of cold storages were already done but they still met difficulties since the onions were not there anymore.
“Difficulty now is the short shelf life. It’s quite challenging how you find them now,” Aguinaldo said.
- Latest
- Trending
