Rodriguez recalls confronting agri exec on sugar import mess

Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez at the Senate hearing on the sugar importation fiasco. SCREENSHOT FROM SENATE

MANILA, Philippines— Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez on Tuesday disclosed confronting resigned Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian over the “illegal” resolution supposedly authorizing the importation of 300,000 metric tons of sugar into the country.

Appearing before the hearing of the Senate blue ribbon committee, Rodriguez narrated the meetings that transpired before the issuance of the controversial Sugar Order No. 4 (SO4).

According to the Executive Secretary, they were in a meeting in Malacañang last August 10 when they learned that Sebastian passed a resolution approving SO4 without the knowledge of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., who also serves as n Secretary of the Department of Agriculture.

Rodriguez said the resolution was also approved without submitting to them the import plan and without even convening the board of the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA).

Marcos Jr. then instructed the Executive Secretary to make sure that the SO4 would not come out and would have “no force and effect.”

After the meeting on August 10, Rodriguez said they proceeded to his office with Sebastian and resigned SRA administrator Hermenegildo Serafica where he confronted the DA official.

“I confronted Usec Leo Sebastian and asked him why he did such a thing behind the President’s back—without the President’s knowledge and in an unfair and dishonorable way,” Rodriguez said.

He said he also asked Sebastian to call Serafica and SRA board member Roland Beltran, put them on speaker phone, and asked the same thing.

“Ang sagot po niya sa akin, ang naging tugon niya, ‘Akala ako po kasi ok na sabi ni Usec Leo,’” the Executive Secretary said, recalling Serafica’s response to him.

Rodriguez said Sebastian and Beltran gave the same answer to him.

The three— Sebastian, Serafica, and Beltran— have since quit their posts after the sugar importation mess. 

Before the approval of the unauthorized SO4, Rodriguez cited several meetings held on sugar importation issues.

In a meeting on August 4, he said he requested an important plan and a draft order for the proposed 300,000 metric tons of sugar, among others, should there be a need for the government to resort to another round of sugar importation.

“I specifically requested that in the event there’s really a need for the government to import, to resort to another round of sugar importation, I asked for the import plan,” Rodriguez said.

“I also asked who will be accredited, and an answer to our query if the PITC (Philippine International Trading Corporation) may import on behalf of industrial and for home consumption sugars and finally, if we may be given a draft Sugar Order for their proposed 300,000 metric tons new round of importation,” he added.

The following day or on August 5, he said they received a memo from Sebastian containing the recommendation to import 300,000 MT of sugar.

The resigned agriculture official sent two text messages on August 7 and August 8 to the Executive Secretary to ask about sugar and fertilizer for farmers.

According to Rodriguez, he “purposely” did not respond to the queries because there was no decision yet at that time.

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