(INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / EDWIN BACASMAS)
MANILA, Philippines — President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. on Thursday bared an alternative scheme to bring down the price of rice amid proposals to amend the Rice Tariffication Law (RTL).
“Well, I don’t want to preempt the bicameral committee but I think we have found the solution already,” said Marcos in an ambush interview in Cagayan de Oro.
Marcos said that if rice prices are high, the government would release cheap rice into the market to force the prices down.
While Marcos reiterated that he would certify amendments to the RTL as urgent, he has been speaking to both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
The RTL limited the National Food Authority’s role in selling rice.
The proposed amendments hope to allow the said agency to sell affordable rice during times of emergency or when prices increase.