Pangilinan urged to firm up efforts to check smuggled rice

Former Sen. Francis Pangilinan (in photo) has been asked by the umbrella group Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura to check rice smuggling. Pangilinan has just been appointed presidential assistant on food security and agriculture modernization. INQUIRER PHOTO/GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines—an umbrella group in the agriculture sector on Tuesday welcomed the appointment of former Sen. Francis Pangilinan as presidential assistant on food security and agriculture modernization, saying this should help firm up efforts to check rice smuggling.

“We urge [Pangilinan] to strengthen the current efforts to support and promote the local rice industry and only import rice as a last resort,” Rosendo So, chair of Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag), said in an interview.

Pangilinan said his role was to complement efforts of the Bureau of Customs in solving the rice smuggling problem in the country, which has been a scourge to farmers.

By targeting rice smuggling, he said he hoped to stop rice cartels from dictating the trade of this staple grain in the country. But he made no promise of eradicating them completely during his term.

“How do you reform a government office that needs reforming? First, you have to, you know, look at the evidence and make people account for their acts, number one. Two is to provide support for those who are well-meaning. I still believe that the majority of those in government are clean and honest. Three is to provide direction. We need to inspire them to act and clean the agency,” Pangilinan said.

So said the group hoped that Pangilinan would be “a positive addition to the reform efforts and local food self-sufficiency drive” of the Department of Agriculture and expected him to help shore up initiatives against the smuggling of agricultural goods, especially rice, and push for a “prolocal agriculture” legislative agenda.

Farmers enjoying high prices

Citing results of the ongoing drive against smuggled grains, Sinag said the local farmers had been enjoying record-high farm gate prices for the past two cropping seasons.

Ofociano Manalo, a rice farmer and Sinag member, said in a statement that even at the height of the harvest season last month, rice growers were earning P22.50 to P24 per kilo of palay.