Plan to legalize rice smugglers’ operations hit

MANILA, Philippines — Lawmakers from the opposition bloc in the House of Representatives deplored yesterday the “stupidity” displayed by Department of Agriculture (DA) officials led by Secretary Emmanuel Piñol in proposing plans to import more rice and fish as well as legalize rice smuggling. 

“I think it’s very unbecoming of the DA secretary to say that there is no problem with people eating bukbok rice. E kung pakainin din kaya natin siya ng bukbok (What if we feed him bugs too)?” an irate House Minority Leader Danilo Suarez told reporters. 

“It’s plain stupidity to call for legalized smuggling of products. They are not solving the problem. They’re looking at something else,” he said, insinuating something fishy.

“They’re giving us mixed signals here. This is very wrong,” said Rep. Alfredo Garbin Jr. of party-list Ako Bicol.

He explained that legalizing smuggling is promoting economic sabotage, especially if it amounts to more than P10 million.

Allowing smuggling will only worsen the government’s woes since it would open the floodgates to the entry of more goods and products of whatever nature to all ports in the country. 

Senior House Deputy Minority Leader Lito Atienza called on Piñol and National Food Authority (NFA) officials led by administrator Jason Aquino to shape up or resign. 

“If they can’t handle the situation of acute food shortage, then they should all resign. We cannot accept the policy that we have to import rice and fish. Are you conditioning the mind of the public with that stupidity?” he added. – With Elizabeth Marcelo, Paolo Romero