Palace wants punishment for rice hoarders

Malacañang on Monday warned charges of economic sabotage against traders hoarding rice in order to justify price increases.

Emerging from a meeting with the National Food Authority (NFA) Council, the agency's top policymaking body, Cabinet Secretary Leoncio "Jun" Evasco Jr. instructed the NFA to monitor and inspect warehouses of traders and called for the prosecution of those found hoarding stocks of the staple.

"Can you sleep at night when a lot of people don't have anything to buy and yet you're hoarding, you are keeping so much?" he said in a press conference, adding such act was not only criminal but also "immoral."

He said it has always been the "perception" that traders hoard supplies so they can sell them at a higher price.

The Palace official, however, insisted that there is no rice shortage, especially in the stock of government-subsidized rice.

"[W]e assure the public that there is no rice shortage and this importation is only as to NFA’s buffer stock. In this manner, the NFA Council has issued a directive on the reassessment of the inventory of the NFA, including its procurement and distribution strategies," Evasco said.

"Again, we would like to assure the public that the NFA Council is on top of this situation. We will ensure the continued supply of affordable rice and continue to champion for the best interest of the Filipino people," he added.

The NFA earlier secured the approval of President Rodrigo Duterte to import 250,000 metric tons of rice to replenish the buffer stock, which is currently good for two days.

The agency is required to have at least 15-day buffer stock at any given time and 30-day buffer stock during lean season, which usually starts in July until September.

Evasco said the importation will be done after the harvest season when the government projects production of 4.9 million metric tons of palay or equivalent to 3.6 million MT of milled rice.

He said the harvest season among local farmers has already started, and it would be at its peak in March this year.

A Senate inquiry on the NFA's low buffer stock has been set for February 27. — RSJ, GMA News