What's the catch? Group raises concern over gov't request for supermarkets to lower sugar price

The government's request for supermarket owners to sell sugar at P70 per kilo may come with a price, the Philippine Amalgamated Supermarket Association (PASA) said on Saturday, Aug. 27.

PASA president Steven Cua said this could be in the form of tax payment or some "favor" that the supermarket owners would ask in return.

“The government is asking them a favor. May utang na loob iyan later on, ‘di ba? Kumbaga sinabi nila, ‘advance na ‘yung tax payment niyo’, kumbaga ibaba ninyo (They will be indebted to them later on, right? Maybe they will say, ‘ advance your tac payments’, meaning lower it),” said Cua.

Cua made the statement in the business perspective wherein he explained that with the prevailing price of sugar per kilo in the market, no traders would sell their product at price which they could not earn profit.

“Well, I find it rather unfair... to ask us to lower our price; when, in fact, how can you do business na palugi (losing business)?” said Cua in an interview over DZBB.

“How can the big ones do that? Of course, may clout sila (they have clout) with the suppliers. Number two, pabor iyan (that’s a favor), eh,” he added.

According to Cua, small supermarkets will lose big if they would sell white sugar lower than the price they purchased it, having zero profit from it.

Recently, President Ferdinand “BongBong” R. Marcos Jr. lauded businessmen who cut down their profits to provide cheap-priced sugar to consumers.

Owners of big supermarkets and groceries have acceded to Marcos’ request to them to bring down the price of sugar to P70 per kilo.

To recall, Marcos met with the owners of Robinsons Supermarket, SM Supermarket, and Puregold Supermarket in Malacanang last week, and they all agreed on a suggested retail price of P70 per kilo of sugar.