One knows that election is around the corner when programs or projects supposedly supporting the lowly— those in the poverty line (from wages inadequate to feed their families), senior citizens, the disabled and solo parents and, ultimately the indigenous people (IPs) or the first ones to lose their properties in the name of progress– are being launched months ahead of elections.
The program will benefit persons with disabilities, solo parents, senior citizens, and, later, indigenous peoples (IP), who collectively comprise 6.9 million households or over 34 million Filipinos.
Bigas 29 – a brainchild of Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez (cousin of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.) months ago – is being launched by the Department of Agriculture (DA) in July to assist low-income groups, alongside the plan for the National Food Authority (NFA) to import 363,697 tons of rice to bolster its reserves, said Bilyonaryo in a report.
For this purpose, the importation for the 19-day buffer stock of NFA would cost P28.39 billion. The qualified customers of the P29 per kilogram rice would be entitled to 10 kg per month or 2.5 kg per week.
Just recently, the NFA sold P25 per kg rice to select private traders of what it said were “old but edible rice,” which the latter repacked and sold to the market at higher prices.
Because of this anomalous transaction, the Ombudsman suspended 29 central and field officials and warehousemen of NFA.
“Although the new NFA selling price is higher than the previous price of P25 per kilo, it is nonetheless a significant discount compared to the prevailing market price (now hovering at P45 or more per kg) ensuring that poverty-stricken Filipinos have access to their main food staple,” the DA press release said.
The DA explained that the NFA selling price was increased to reduce the subsidy that the government will provide to the poor under its Bigas 29 program.
DA Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. estimates that the subsidy will cost the government around P1.39 to P1.53 billion a month and that the government will spend at least P28.39 billion to buy the imported rice.
The Bigas 29 program targets vulnerable sectors, specifically persons with disabilities, solo parents, senior citizens, those under the 4P program, and eventually indigenous peoples. Approximately 6.9 million households, or over 34 million Filipinos, are expected to benefit from it.
The rice will be made available only in KADIWA stores, and the government has started a dry run of the Bigas 29 program. Each household will be allowed to buy 10 kilos per month, which translates to only 2.5 kilos per week.
The Bigas 29 program will officially roll out in early July.
The agency said Bigas 29 dovetails with President Marcos Jr.’s vision of a food-secure Philippines, where basic commodities are affordable and easily accessible, especially to poor Filipinos. Marcos, in his campaign, promised to sell rice at P20 per kg., still an aspiration until now.
Laurel told the NFA Council that the program’s implementation, given the monthly target volume, procurement cost, and selling price, would incur a social cost between P1.39 billion and P1.53 billion per month, Business Mirror reported.
Meanwhile, the NFA is set to procure 559,535 (MT) of palay from local farmers—a volume equivalent to the amount of rice to be imported by DA. The estimated cost of securing rice buffer stocks to cover 19 days of national consumption is at least P28.39 billion.
Under Republic Act 11203 or the Rice Tariffication Law “in the event of any imminent or forecasted shortage, or such other situation requiring government intervention, the President is empowered for a limited period and/or a specified volume, to allow the importation at a lower applied tariff rate to address the situation. Such order shall take effect immediately and can only be issued when Congress is not in session.”
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