00:00 The rise of the rice cartel was also brought up in the camera.
00:03 The President also mentioned that he is expecting 20 pesos per kilo of rice.
00:09 Tina Pangaliban Perez is a witness.
00:11 [Music]
00:15 The Department of Agriculture admitted that they cannot reduce the price of 1 kilo of rice to 20 pesos
00:21 except for what President Bongbong Marcos promised during the campaign.
00:25 [Speaking in Tagalog]
00:34 To be honest, we never discussed about those things that you're asking, Mr. Chair, with the President.
00:40 Yes.
00:40 Reduction, that is included, but not the 20 pesos, Mr. Chair.
00:45 Based on the monitoring of the DA, the cheapest local rice is 41 pesos per kilo.
00:51 But some congressmen said that the price is dictated by the rice cartel.
00:56 At this point, the farmers are still subject to the caprice and wishes of the buyer.
01:05 And we cannot immediately change that system, Mr. Chair.
01:10 Mr. Chair, one of the big problems we have since time immemorial,
01:15 why it is the traders that dictate the prices is the rice cartel.
01:22 We still have the rice cartel today.
01:26 I don't believe, Mr. Chair, that this time, Mr. Chair, because of the high price of the imported rice coming in,
01:35 it is pulling the price of the local to a higher level.
01:39 The DA insisted that there is no problem with the supply, even if some rice cartels are already tasted.
01:45 So some congressmen asked, if there is no problem with the supply, why is the price of rice so high?
01:51 It's being influenced by the global prices, which has spiked over time.
01:58 And also, local prices, farm grade prices, which has also risen over the last year,
02:07 primarily from the input cost prices.
02:11 But the Commission on Audit in its 2022 report said that the DA was wrong
02:16 in asking for more than 855,000 bags of rice seeds and more than 2,000 farm equipment
02:23 to be distributed to help farmers to lower their expenses.
02:28 Some congressmen said that the Administrator of the National Food Authority
02:34 cannot impose the NFA on the importation of rice.
02:40 You just mentioned a while ago that we will not import,
02:45 and yet I see in your trainings and your reports that you have been traveling to India and all other places.
02:53 I was asked to go to India to find out as a fact finding, what are the terms of reference of the G2G.
03:03 For GMA Integrated News, Tina Panganiban Perez, your witness.
03:09 [Music]
03:10 [Music]
03:23 [BLANK_AUDIO]
