Marcos blames smuggling, hoarding for high agri prices in Q1

MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday said that the sky-high prices of agricultural products in the first quarter of 2023 were due to no other reason other than smuggling and hoarding by syndicates.

To recall, onion prices reached P200-P350 per kilogram in local markets in the latter part of 2022 and the beginning of 2023.

READ: Onion prices worldwide much lower, deepen questions on incredulous costs in PH

“I think maliwanag na maliwanag na sa ating lahat na ang pagtaas ng presyo by 87 percent nung nakaraang Enero, Pebrero, walang dahilan ‘yun. Kumpleto ang onion dito, nagho-hoard lang talaga at iniipit yun presyo tapos yung cold storage ay hindi pinapagamit sa iba para ‘yung kontrolado lang ng sindikato na onion, ‘yun lang ang aabot sa palengke.

(I think it is apparent to us all that the price increase of 87 percent last January and February was for no good reason. The onions were sufficient; they were just hoarding and tightening prices. The cold storages were not allowed to be used, so the syndicates controlled the onions that will reach the market.)

As chief of the Department of Agriculture (DA), Marcos vowed that he would stomp out these syndicates.

“Yung mga simpleng problem na sinusundan natin, yung rice smuggling, sugar smuggling, onion smuggling. Gagawin natin lahat para matigil yan, yung hoarding,” Marcos Jr. said.

(These simple problems — the rice smuggling, sugar smuggling, onion smuggling — we will do everything to stop them, as well as the hoarding.)

However, the DA itself has faced accusations of state-sponsored hoarding after Senator Risa Hontiveros found anomalous shipping imports by Senior Agriculture Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban back in February.

RELATED STORIES

‘Epitome of impunity’: Hontiveros blasts Panganiban’s choice as SRA head

Hontiveros uncovers alleged government-sponsored sugar smuggling

Usec Panganiban admits to rushing through sugar imports