MAGIGING isang hamon umano ang pagtiyak na sapat ang suplay ng bigas sa bansa.
Ayon kay House committee on ways and means chairman at Albay Rep. Joey Salceda pinapalala ng tagtuyot sa Thailand at Vietnam ang epekto ng coronavirus sa bansa.
“It will make the response more costly since it is more of a rice price crisis since world stocks are sufficient. China’s withholding from Mekong and temptation towards export ban poses risk to supply. The current COVID crisis should remind policy makers that food security and health goods security are two vital national goals,” ani Salceda, co-chairman ng Stimulus Cluster ng Kamara de Representantes.
Sinabi ni Salceda na dapat ay unahan na ng Department of Agriculture at Department of Trade and Industry ang mga magiging problema gaya presyo at mapagkukunan ng bigas.
“Historically, we’ve had challenges with rice price and supply in economic and social crises, but those challenges were rarely about having enough rice for everyone in the aggregate. Kumbaga, laging sapat para sa lahat – pero laging may sobra at laging may nagkukulang. The issues have always been about getting the national supply of rice into the communities that need the supply. Those challenges are made starker by delays in ECQ checkpoints,” Salceda said. “The aggregate does not equate to local experience. So, our monitoring will have to span the whole chain, from farm to point of retail sale.”
Sinabi ni Salceda na mahalaga na sapat ang suplay ngayong ipinatutupad ang Enhanced Community Quarantine sa Luzon.
“The surer the supply, the less likely people will violate stay-at-home and quarantine rules. If they’re not sure they can buy rice at fair prices, our people will break the rules,” dagdag pa ni Salceda.
Batay sa datos na nakuha ni Salceda ang tumaas ng 12 porsyento ang presyo ng bigas sa unang linggo ng Abril. Mas mababa rin umano ang stock ng bansa kumpara noong nakaraang taon.
“As of 01 March 2020, the total rice stocks inventory stood at 2,178.64 thousand metric tons, 1.9 percent lower year-on-year, and 8.3 percent lower month-on-month.”
Ang anihan ay sa Mayo pa umano kaya dapat ay gumawa ng hakbang ang mga ahensya ng gobyerno.
“Just today, the National Food Authority (NFA) reported that some drivers of 14 trucks carrying 14,000 sacks of rice from Regions 1, 2 and 3 were failed to meet at their Malolos warehouse to deliver the rice to warehouses in Valenzuela and Cavite. Only 8 trucks were able to reach the Malolos warehouse, while six trucks were allegedly stopped at quarantine checkpoints. Government to government na yan, ah,” punto ni Salceda.
May mga bantay din umano sa mga checkpoints na nalilito pa sa polisiya at Hinaharang ang mga input products gaya ng fertilizers at pesticides.
“We can’t produce rice without those inputs. I’m asking the DA and the DTI to make sure that we unchain the whole supply chain. That’s why a week before the DA and the DTI issued agency orders, I requested that we ensure that the checkpoints are rational and nationally supervised.”