SO No. 6 sent to Palace for review, deemed approved —board member

The sugar order for the importation of 440,000 metric tons—unsigned by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. as Secretary of Agriculture and Sugar Regulatory Administration Board chairman —was sent to Malacañang for review and was returned without any comment, a member of the board said on Thursday.

Thus, Sugar Order No. 6 is deemed approved, Pablo Luis Azcona, the planters' representative, said on Bernadette Reyes' report on "24 Oras". 

“The SO becomes valid if it is signed by the three members of the board and the ex-officio chairman which is the Department of Agriculture or whoever he authorizes," Azcona said.

"Since Undersecretary Panganiban already signed it, we sent it to Malacañang for review, and then [it was returned by] Malacañang with no comment so it was deemed approved,” he added.

Malacañang last year disowned and branded as illegal SO No. 4, which would have authorized the country’s importation of 300,000 MT of white sugar. The document lacked Marcos’ signature.

Azcona said SO No. 6 went through the “correct procedures” and they presented an importation plan to the President before it was issued.

Azcona, Agriculture Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban, Acting SRA Administrator David John Thaddeus Alba, and Millers Representative Mitzi Mangwang signed SO No. 6.

The United Sugar Producers Federation of the Philippines (UNIFED) said it saw no problem with the order.

UNIFED president Manuel Lamata said Marcos handpicked his undersecretary "so I believe he can sit in or sign for and on behalf of the President."

Opposition Senator Risa Hontiveros said the absence of the Marcos' signature was "probably the least of my questions."

"Where did they get the volume of 440,000 MT when three mahor federations of sugar producers pushed for only 330,000 MT?" Hontiveros said.

"Why is the Department of Agriculture given the discretion of final approval of the volumes to be allocated to importers when in previous SOs, they were based on a pro-rated mechanical computation?" she added.—Sundy Locus/NB, GMA Integrated News