Governent to discuss lifting of rice price caps

MANILA, Philippines — The government is likely to meet next week to discuss the implementation and lifting of the price caps on rice, according to the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA).

“We’ll more likely meet again next week because he (President Marcos) did say he wants us to meet again and see the numbers, see the indicators, see the outcomes vs. the objectives of the price caps and then we’ll make a decision,” NEDA Secretary Arsenio Balisacan told reporters yesterday.

Balisacan said the agency would want to see the price caps on rice lifted soon.

“We all recognize that there are so many moving parts and these price caps could not be expected to last very long because that creates a lot of problems,” he said.

Under Executive Order 39, price caps were imposed on regular rice at P41 per kilogram and P45 per kilogram for well-milled rice amid increasing prices.

The price caps took effect on Sept. 5.

“The President will announce that once he has all the information that he is asking us to show, to study, indicators that will be useful to inform that decision. Hopefully, in the next, in a week or so, we can come up with those indicators and the President can make the decision,” Balisacan said.

Life terms for hoarders

The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading the bill expanding and strengthening the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act of 2016 or Republic Act 10845, which provides life imprisonment as penalty for hoarders and price manipulators.

House Bill 9284 or the Anti Agri-Fishery Commodities and Tobacco Economic Sabotage Act obtained 289 votes from administration lawmakers at past midnight on Wednesday, where rice smuggling, as well as other products, can be classified as