Surigao del Sur Rep. Johnny Pimentel on Sunday, July 3, commended President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s plans to prioritize the country’s food security, saying that increased farm output will create a buffer against the soaring food prices.
The President has placed himself as head of the Department of Agriculture (DA), vowing to give “preferential treatment” to attaining food sufficiency.
Pimentel said that the 19th Congress is ready to help the President fulfill his legislative agenda and that they are “looking forward” to his first State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 25.
“Offhand, the President’s determination to give the highest priority to increasing farm output, along with building up our infrastructure, should keep the economy on track to achieving full recovery from the pandemic,” the lawmaker said.
“The best way for us to fight soaring food prices is to increase (food) supply by improving farm productivity. This will also generate new employment and raise household income in the provinces,” he added.
As the President also said that his administration will soon present a comprehensive infrastructure plan to the public, Pimentel seconded that “reliable infrastructure” will get rid of “supply chain bottlenecks, reduce the cost of transporting food commodities and drive jobs growth.”
The Philippine Statistics Authority said that food prices soared in the national level from 4.0 percent in April to 5.2 percent in May.
Pimentel was also impressed by the new economic team, saying that Marcos “has so far made all the right moves in selecting his economic and infrastructure managers.”
“The appointees have been very encouraging. They inspire confidence. We find then reassuring to the business community and to foreign investors,” the lawmaker added.
The economic team is composed of Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, Socioeconomic Planning Secretary and concurrent Director-General of the National Economic Development Authority Arsenio Balicasan, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Felipe Medalla, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista, and Public Works Secretary Manuel Bonoan.