Marcos says gov't continues to look for other oil sources

President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. said Thursday the Philippines is looking for alternative fuel sources amid the continuing increase in petroleum product prices caused by the Middle East conflict.

When it comes to food supply, Marcos assured the public that the government is looking for measures to lower the prices of food products.

''Sa pagkain, mas marami tayong magagawa, naghahanap kami ng paraan pa para ibaba ang presyo ng pagkain. 'Yung langis wala tayong magagawa diyan, pero at least 'yung supply tinitiyak natin na magkakaroon. Kahit may stock tayo, patuloy ang paghanap ng Pilipinas dahil kumukuha talaga tayo sa Middle East, naghahanap tayo alternative sources ng langis,'' Marcos told reporters in Mariveles, Bataan. 

(When it comes to food, we can do more measures and we are looking for ways to lower the prices of food products. When it comes to oil, we can't do anything about that but at least we make sure that the supply is enough. Even if we have stock, the Philippines continue to look for alternative sources of oil.)

''We are adjusting well and we want to... ang talagang goal namin dito is to keep 'yung hanapbuhay ng tao, na mayroon silang hanapbuhay and the only way to do that is kung hindi natin, halimbawa 'yung transport workers, hindi itataas ang fare sa ngayon, deferred lang muna ang fare hike eh dadagdagan muna natin ang tulong sa kanila,'' he added.

(Our goal here is to keep the jobs of the public. And the only way to do that is for example, when it comes to transport workers, we deferred the fare hike but we will add assistance for them.)

Recently, Iran's military command warned that oil prices may reach as high as USD$200 per barrel. It has effectively shut Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas pass.

Due to this, fuel prices continue to increase, some as high as P100 per liter, as oil companies implement staggered adjustments.

Despite the skyrocketing fuel price hikes in recent weeks the President stated earlier that everything is normal, adding that there is no reason for the public to hoard products. —AOL, GMA Integrated News