MANILA, Philippines — Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Saturday urged the Department of Energy (DOE) to extend the prize freeze on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and kerosene products to June 30.
In a statement, Gatchalian, chair of the Senate committee on energy, said that he made the call in order to help Filipinos “juggle their day-to-day finances smoothly” following the economic impacts brought about by the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic.
“Having to contend with accumulated utility bills, implementing a price freeze throughout the duration of the quarantine period will go a long way in easing the financial burden of many of our kababayan (fellowmen), especially for those ‘no work, no pay’ Filipinos,” Gatchalian said.
Gatchalian added that oil companies raised LPG prices by more than P5 per kilogram on May 1. This adjustment, Gatchalian added, means a price increase of P56.98 up to P63.80 for a standard 11-kilogram LPG cylinder.
“Sa ganitong panahon ng krisis, ang 50 o 60 pesos ay malaking tulong na lalo na sa mga pamilyang nasa mahihirap na komunidad. Pwede na itong ipambili ng isang kilo ng bigas o kaya ay hanggang tatlong piraso ng delata,” he said.
(In this time of crisis, P50 to P60 is already a big help especially for families in poor communities. With this amount, you can already buy one kilo of rice or may three pieces of canned goods.)
In March, a prize freeze on LPG and kerosene products was imposed for 15 days, in compliance with Republic Act No. 10623 or the Amended Price Act.
But Gatchalian urged to have the prize freeze extended, which was done until end of April.
Metro Manila and other areas continue to be under a period of enhanced community quarantine due to rising COVID-19 cases in the country.
As of Friday, the Philippines has 10,463 COVID-19 cases, with 1,743 recoveries and 696 deaths.