DA assures NFA’s continuous operations despite suspension of over 100 staff

The Department of Agriculture (DA) on Tuesday assured that the National Food Authority (NFA) will continue operating despite the suspension of over 100 officials and employees in relation to alleged irregularities in the sale of rice stock in government-run warehouses.

Interviewed on state-run PTV’s Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon, Agriculture Assistant Secretary and DA spokesperson Arnel de Mesa said the NFA has “enough personnel to ensure continuous services.”

On Monday, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. announced that the Office of the Ombudsman ordered the suspension of 139 officials and employees of the NFA, including administrator Roderico Bioco and assistant administrator for operations John Robert Hermano, effective March 4, 2024. 

Tiu Laurel, in the meantime, will take over the helm of the NFA.

De Mesa said that while more than 100 personnel of the NFA were suspended, the agency still has over 1,000 officials and employees to man its regional and field offices as well as warehouses.

“‘Yung mga next in rank ang uupo na mga regional managers at branch managers,” the DA official said.

(Those next in rank will sit as regional managers and branch managers.)

De Mesa said the NFA Council will conduct an emergency meeting on Wednesday, March 6, 2024 to ensure all positions are filled.

“Para masigurado na tuloy tuloy ang serbisyo ng NFA sa ating mga magsasaka lalo na ngayon nagsimula na ang harvest at nagsimula na rin ang pamimili ng NFA sa ating mga magsasaka,” he said.

(To ensure that the services of the NFA to farmers are continuous especially since the harvest season has already started and the NFA has also started buying stocks from farmers.)

Over 100 NFA officials and employees were suspended on the heels of an investigation into the allegations that certain officials authorized the sale of milled rice stored in the agency’s warehouse for P25 a kilogram without bidding, and after purchasing the grains in palay (unmilled rice) form at P23 per kilogram.

The NFA, in its defense, said it has the mandate to dispose of its rice in good and consumable condition, emphasizing that it released the supply responsibly by stretching to the maximum shelf life, and minimizing the sale of residual volume to other accounts.

The Rice Tariffication Law, which allowed liberalized importation of rice, removed the NFA’s role to regulate the rice sector as well as being the only agency allowed to import rice shipments into the country.

The NFA’s mandate now solely focuses on ensuring sufficient supply of buffer stocks of rice in the Philippines —30 days worth of the country's total consumption during the lean season, and 15 days otherwise. —Ted Cordero/ VAL, GMA Integrated News