REINING IT IN
AS the price of onion starts to increase again, Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez renewed a campaign to bring down the cost in the market.
Romualdez said intensified campaign must be done following monitoring reports that hoarders are active once again in price manipulation of the widely-used agricultural product.
Based on the monitoring of the House committee on agriculture and food, it was shown that the price of onion in the market is starting to skyrocket from P90 to P180 per kilo recently.
“Nagsisimula na namang maging aktibo ang mga hoarders at price manipulators ng sibuyas. We will nip this problem in the bud. Hindi natin papayagan na pumalo ang presyo nito sa halagang di abot-kaya ng ordinaryong Pilipino,” Romualdez said.
“Akala yata ng mga hoarders at price manipulators na ito, hindi natin sila binabantayan. Sa pagkakataong ito, hindi nila tayo malulusutan. Pakikilusin natin ang lahat ng sangay ng gobyerno para maibalik sa dati ang presyo ng sibuyas,” he added.
Romualdez said he has asked officials of the Bureau of Plant and industry (BPI) to report to his office so they can explain to him and other House leaders why hoarders are able to manipulate the price of onion once again.
He explained that onion farmers had already sold their harvest to wholesalers, yet the supply remains scarce which leads to higher price of onion.
“Sa report na natanggap namin, naibenta na ng mga magsasaka ang harvest nila. Ibig sabihin, nasa cold storage na ang mga ito at pinipigil lang ang release sa market para mapataas ang presyo.
Ito ang modus operandi na nadiskubre ng House Committee kung kaya napatigil natin ito noon,” Romualdez said.
“Kung hindi nila ilalabas ang mga produkto nila, baka mapilitan ang gobyerno na mag-import ng sibuyas. Hindi naman maaapektuhan ang mga magsasaka dahil wala na sa kanila ang mga produkto nila. ‘Yung mga hoarders at price manipulators ang siguradong na malulugi kung may importation,” he explained.
