DOE had shortcomings in its response to fuel price hikes –Pacquiao

Presidential candidate Senator Manny Pacquiao on Monday said the continuous fuel price hikes in the country could have been avoided if the Department of Energy (DOE) had the “foresight to stabilize fuel prices” by creating gasoline and diesel buffer stocks.

In a statement, Pacquiao said that the state-owned Philippine National Oil Company-Exploration Corporation (PNOC-EC), should have a regular stockpile of fuel that can be used as a reserve when there is a marked increase in fuel prices in the global market.

“‘Yan talaga ang malaking pagkukulang ng gobyerno lalung-lalo na ‘yung DOE natin dahil supposedly kapag normal po ang sitwasyon natin, dapat ang PNOC ang nag-iimport para mayroon tayong reserve na tinatawag para pag dumating ‘yung mga ganitong pagkakataon, mayroon tayong magamit,” Pacquiao said.

(That is a major shortcoming of the government, especially the DOE because supposedly when our situation is normal, PNOC should be the one to import so that we have a reserve to use for situations like this.)

“Na-create natin ‘yang PNOC para gampanyan ‘yung trabaho kaso lang hindi nagagampanan yung trabaho. Edi walang reserve na fuel, walang tayong pondo para pang subsidize sa ating mga consumers. ‘Yang ikinakasama ng loob ko dahil saka lang tayo naghahanda kapag dumating ang mga sakuna. Bakit hindi tayo maghahanda kahit wala pang sakuna?” he added.

(We created the PNOC to do that work, but they didn't. That's why we don’t have reserve fuel and funds to subsidize our consumers. This makes me feel bad because we only prepare when a disaster strikes. Why don't we prepare even before that?)

The Philippines will face the biggest price hike on petroleum products this year on Tuesday.

The DOE earlier said prices are expected to increase further in the coming weeks, citing the limited output and the ongoing geopolitical tensions involving Russia, a major exporter.

Pacquiao indicated that the PNOC should have exercised its mandate to create fuel reserves as soon as the government started easing restrictions on transportation and businesses amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aside from this, he added that the government should also revive the subsidy mechanism for oil and fuel consumers or the oil price stabilization fund (OPSF) which was abolished with the enactment of the oil deregulation law.

“Dapat ang ating gobyerno, taon-taon naglalaan ng pondo. Mag-separate ka lang ng pondo para in case na dumating ‘yung mga ganitong pagkakataon, ‘yung tinatawag nating oil price stabilization fund, may pondo tayo taon-taon,” Pacquiao said.

(Our government should allocate funds annually. Just separate a fund in case such a situation happens, we have the oil price stabilization fund every year.)

“Palaki [nang] palaki yun eh. Para in case na dumating ‘yung pagkakataon, mayroon na tayong reserve fuel mayroon pa tayong pondo para i-subsidize ang ating mga consumers kasi kawawa po talaga ang ating mga consumers,” he added.

(It gets bigger and bigger. In case the situation arises, we would have fuel reserves and the funds to subsidize our consumers because they suffer from this)

Last Wednesday, Malacañang called on Congress to review the oil deregulation law amid the increases in oil prices and the situation in Ukraine that is expected to have an economic impact on the Philippines.

GMA News Online sought comment from Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi regarding Pacquiao’s statement, but he has yet to reply as of this posting.

DOE Undersecretary Gerardo Erguiza, however, previously said that there was no problem with the supply of fuel products coming into the country, adding that prices were the problem. — DVM, GMA News