ILOILO City – The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Agriculture (DA) are monitoring and profiling rice retailers in Region 6 as part of efforts to enforce the price ceiling set by the national government.
DTI focuses on grocery stores and supermarkets while the DA zeroes in on wet markets and stores down to the barangays.
Ermelinda P. Pollentes, officer-in-charge regional director of DTI-6, said the two agencies are handing out forms to retailers, asking for, among others, the following data:
* stocks on hand
* source of supply
* how long do supplies last
* prices offered by wholesalers
* estimated possible losses incurred
Pollentes said data gathered will be encoded by the DTI and DA in a system accessible to both government agencies.
The data could be used as basis for the assistance that the national government will provide to affected rice retailers.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., through Executive Order (EO) No. 39 on Aug. 31, ordered the price cap for rice amid soaring commodity prices.
The price ceiling for regular milled rice is set at P41 per kilogram, while the cap for well-milled rice is P45 per kilogram.
Under EO No. 39, “the DTI and DA shall ensure the strict implementation of the mandated price ceilings on rice in the market, including monitoring and investigating abnormal price movements and providing assistance to affected retailers. The Department of the Interior and Local Government shall provide the necessary support to the DA and DTI for this purpose.”
What will happen to violators?
Pollentes explained that since they are still in the implementation stage, they will not be strict yet.
“Kon dira mo basehan sa EO 39, dapat may mga sanctions. However, at this point, it’s too early to have that in Region 6 because we still do not have the complete profiles. We want to know before we take any action. Siempre dapat evidence-based,” she said.
She added that the agencies will be more stringent next week.
“We believe that our retailers will cooperate,” Pollentes said. “We are not here really to be enemies of retailers. We want a win-win, which is why we would like to determine how extensive the losses are.”
The DTI-6 OIC believes the price cap is only temporary, and prices may change in the coming weeks as the new harvest season ushers in.
Pollentes also hoped that the Price Coordinating Council of each local government unit in the region would also conduct their monitoring.
Despite these, the DTI and DA assured that the region is more than 100 percent rice-sufficient, and the levels are seen to increase with the nearing of the harvest season, so there is no need for panic-buying.
“We assured you that we are here to support the consumers, to ensure that there is a stable supply and that prices are within the reach of our Filipino consumers,” Pollentes said.
Yesterday morning, a joint meeting was held at the DTI Regional Office 6 between the DTI, DA, National Food Authority (NFA), Bureau of Plant Industry, and others regarding the implementation of EO No. 39.
Retailers not yet adhering with the price cap
Although the EO took effect on Tuesday, some rice retailers in Iloilo City are not implementing it just yet.
“Indi kami makabuhi sang amo na nga presyo kay taas ang amon kuha sang bugas,” Juanito Barroca of Barangay Liberation, City Proper told Panay News.
But if the national government becomes more firm, Barroca said he has no choice but to follow and incur losses.
He could only hope for financial assistance from the government.
Jane Pedregosa of Lapuz district lamented the same.
“Apektado gid kay siempre diin naman bawion ang amon capital,” she said.
Meanwhile, according to Arnel Legaspi of Guimaras, it is okay to lower the price of rice because it will benefit consumers, but retailers should also have a cheap source.
“Nami gid tani kon barato ang bugas, siempre makabulig ka sa mga pigado pero kamahal sang capital namon subong. Kon may magbaligya kanamon sang barato nga bugas, mas okay gid,” Legaspi said.
Yesterday, Department of Social Welfare and Development secretary Rex Gatchalian said the agency will provide cash assistance to small rice retailers who will be affected by the imposition of a cap on rice prices.
He said DSWD will utilize its sustainable livelihood program to aid small rice traders and retailers. He said the financial assistance will be capped at P15,000 per retailer.
The agency is just waiting for a list of qualified retailers, which will be provided by the DTI and DA.
“Hopefully, by next week, we can conduct a payout for the sustainable livelihood grant to our affected rice retailers,” Gatchalian said. (With a report from the Philippine Star)/PN