Food shortage
must be probed

Senator Mar Roxas was reported to have said he would ask the Senate to investigate, not just the rice, but also the food shortage in the face of a report that there is also a corn shortage in Cebu.

But the main focus must be on rice.

Why do we have a shortage? What had the government done in so many years to avert this? Where did our billions and billions of pesos lost by the rice trading agency, the National Food Authority, go?

If we imported, it was for the purpose of selling it here. Why did NFA lose? And of these billions of pesos lost, hundreds of billions since then, why were these not used to support production instead?

In effect we were supporting producers in other countries, neglecting our own producers. Why? The Senate must have an answer for these.

* * *

We have the best agriculture school, specializing on rice production in Los Baños, Laguna run by the University of the Philippine. We have also the International Rice and Research Institute, funded by foreign donors.

And experts now in both Thailand and Vietnam and other Asian countries came here to study on rice production. But why is it that, after learning from us, they went home, produced the rice and exported to us?

Why?

Our rice trading agency, the NFA has been perceived to be one of the corrupt agencies in the country. Is this so? What is the truth?

The President has ordered an issuance of new permits to retail rice. Why? There must be something wrong. What’s wrong?

An investigation should be made, even here in Bacolod. NFA people in cahoots with traders or retailers?

* * *

There are people to whom NFA people sell NFA rice. What I was told these people rebag the rice they buy from NFA and sell it as local rice. They make a big killing.

If they buy at NFA at P18.50 a kilo and sell it at retail at even P30 a kilo only, that’s a big profit. Naturally, the NFA people who facilitate this sale must have their share.

One trader whispered this to me. But let us not take that as truth. Let there be an investigation.

The fact that the President ordered an issuance of new permits shows something is wrong. That’s not enough. People involved should be investigated.

* * *

When you listen to politicians they have many solutions. The best and most practical of them all is by Party-list Rep. Satur Ocampo. He said the solution to avert rice shortage is to increase the gate price of farmers.

I think NFA has now raised the gate price of NFA buying to P12 a kilo. Is this enough to meet the big increase in production inputs?

Also, remember, experience shows, it is not comfortable selling to NFA. Palm greasing is needed there, too. Farmers will tell you that.

If you don’t grease some palms, your palay may be said to lack purity or does not have the right moisture content. So, after spending for transportation, you bring your rice back.

* * *

That is why it calls for a complete overhaul of rice trading. In the past, to overhaul it, they changed the name so that the unwanted personnel are terminated.

After NFA, what? I wrote the other day, rice trading agency had undergone many names, PRATRA, NAMARCO, RCA, NGA, now NFA.

But the secret here is still the President. As long as the President does not order a focus on improving production, shortages will be there. They will still import and import because there’s big money in importation.

When can we have rice self sufficiency? I am afraid, not in ten years, depending on how the President does it with a focus.

On the 10th year, our rice needs will be nearly double as population goes into something like 120 million. And other rice producing countries will also not be in a position to sell to us. Ponder on this.

* * *

Meanwhile tighten your belts. The President and Secretary Yap were wrong to say people must reduce their rice intake by half.

They are talking of white collar workers. Not the blue collar laborers in the farm and other manual workers. Their main staple is rice and a little viand or even salt or patis.

Give him half of what he needs to sustain him for the whole day and he will collapse. This shows both the President and the Agriculture Secretary do not know farm work and the farmers.

But I just want to emphasize my theme today. Let us investigate the rice shortage and find out what were the causes.

If our purpose is to solve this problem, then we must know the causes. And who else can bring this whole thing in the open but the Senate.*

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