Roque: Wait for Duterte’s clarification on NFA Council abolition

Two of President Rodrigo Duterte’s alter egos have contrasting versions of what the chief executive intended to do with the National Food Authority (NFA) Council following his meeting with rice traders on Thursday.

Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol said the President wanted the NFA Council, which decides on rice importation matters, scrapped while Duterte’s spokesman, Harry Roque, said otherwise.

Piñol and Roque were present in the meeting held in the presidential palace which was closed to media coverage.

“It’s NFA that will be transferred to (the Office of the President) with the council,” Roque said in a message to reporters on Friday.

Later in the day, Roque said in a radio interview that Palace officials decided to seek a clarification from the President on the matter.

“Ang katotohanan po niyan ay nakita ko nga po iyong statement ni Secretary Piñol, at inaamin ko po narinig ko rin iyon na sinabi ni Presidente. Pero ang sasabihin ko lang po is noong sinabi po ni Presidente iyon, tumayo si Secretary Piñol, tumayo si Executive Secretary (Salvador Medialdea) nag-usap sila sa entablado. At narinig ko rin po after at siguro nagkaroon sila ng mga pag-uusap kaya lang hindi naman ako nasa entablado po, so hindi ko na alam,” he said.

“Pero ang sinabi ko lang po din kaninang umaga, iyong mga narinig ko lang. Pero ngayon po ang usapan, ay ika-clarify na lang kay Presidente kung ano talagang gusto niyang mangyari,” the Palace spokesman added.

Abolishing the NFA Council requires legislation as the body, which is composed of representatives from agriculture, trade, finance departments, NFA and the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, is a creation of Marcos-era Presidential Decree 1770.

Piñol also said that the President will return to the Department of Agriculture the supervision of the NFA and other agriculture-related agencies.

In a separate statement, Roque said Duterte is considering the approval of rice importation to be administered by the office of Agriculture Undersecretary Bernadette Romulo Puyat, subject to the review of the Office of the Executive Secretary.

The Palace official also said Duterte has instructed Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade to relieve all Land Transportation Office (LTO) officials and personnel assigned in the truck weighing station in Aritao, Nueva Vizcaya following complaints by truck owners of extortion activities amounting to millions of pesos every month.

Duterte's meeting came amid reports of depleting supply of government-subsidized rice.

Piñol said rice traders promised to pass on to retailers low-priced commercial rice at P38 per kilo beginning next week. This will allow retailers to sell rice to the public at P39 per kilo.

The Palace confirmed this, saying rice traders pledged to give at least 700,000 sacks of rice to replenish the NFA stocks sold at P38 per kilo to be sold at P39.

The lowest price for rice at wet markets these days is around P44 per kilo.

The special pricing will be given to retailers by rice traders starting next week until the supply of low-priced NFA rice comes in.

The rice traders decided to do this after Duterte appealed to rice traders to make low-priced rice available to the public. — RSJ/LBG, GMA News