Senatorial candidate Herbert “Bistek” Bautista on Thursday urged the public to brace for a continued surge in fuel prices as suppliers are likely to hoard stocks to push prices up.

The UniTeam senatorial bet noted that oil prices are now being dictated by the ongoing war in Ukraine, the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and supply chain problems.

“Because we’re just recovering from the pandemic, the production of oil is still slow and there’s a possibility of hoarding by oil producers worldwide,” said Bautista, a former Quezon City mayor.

“They will hoard to push prices up like what happened in the 1970s,” Bautista warned, referring to the global energy crisis when petroleum shortages wrecked international markets.

Bautista reiterated his call for the government to consider buying back Petron Corp., now owned by San Miguel Corp. as part of the mitigating measures.

San Miguel’s honcho, Ramon Ang, has been reportedly willing to sell Petron back to the government, he pointed out.

“The benefit will be nationwide because there’s many gas stations in the Philippines already even in the remotest areas,” Bautista said.

He added that if the government is able to buy back Petron, it can compete with other oil distributors like Shell Corporation.

“If Shell fixes the price at P80 per liter, the government, because it owns Petron already, can sell at P60,” he calculated.

The proposal will not mean losses for the government and instead bring more income, "as more people will buy gas from us,” added Bautista, who is seeking a Senate seat in the upcoming May 2022 elections.

While prices were expected to roll back next week, Bautista said the situation remains unpredictable due to the ongoing tensions in Ukraine and supply-side issues arising from the pandemic.

He said it is also best for the government to continue its subsidies for the poorest families in the Philippines and also consider amending the Oil Deregulation Act to allow the government to step in to control prices.