Cold storage owner held in contempt for refusal to attend House probe on onion prices

A committee of the House of Representatives on Wednesday cited Eric Pavilona, an owner of a cold storage facility, in contempt and ordered his arrest following his refusal to attend hearings on potential overpricing and price manipulation of onions in the Philippine market.

With 20 votes in the affirmative, the House Committee on Agriculture and Food cited Pabilona in contempt and ordered his arrest and detention following his failure to attend hearings without a legal excuse for the past months.

“For continuing defiance of Mr. Eric Pabilona, the owner of Tian Long Corporation, it would seem to be this is an outright disrespect to the committee,” SAGIP party-list Representative Rodante Marcoleta said during the hearing.

The committee voted in favor of the arrest and detention of Pabilona, in coordination with the Philippine National Police.

Pabilona is listed as the owner of the cold storage firm Tian Long Corporation. He was earlier found to be a shareholder of PhilVieva Corporation, an organization founded by Lilia Cruz who is accused of smuggling onions and garlic.

Cruz has denied the accusation.

Marikina Representative Stella Quimbo earlier said that PhilVieva controls the entire supply chain from farming to retail, adding that it could have dictated onion prices in the markets.

To recall, prices of onion had reached as high as P750 per kilogram in Cebu City in January, far from the suggested retail price of P170 per kilogram set in October, which was imposed “not to aggravate the current difficulties of the Filipino people.”

Latest data available from the Department of Agriculture (DA) show that prices of onions in Metro Manila ranged from P140 to P190 per kilogram for the local red variety, P120 to P170 per kilogram for the local white variety, and P120 to P160 for the imported white variety as of August 22, 2023. —KBK, GMA Integrated News