LUCENA CITY – Quezon 2nd District Rep. David ‘Jayjay’ Suarez has urged his fellow legislators to thoroughly study if the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) is really fulfilling its mandate under Executive Order No. 18 and the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2015 (RA 10659).

A message sent by Suarez to the Manila Bulletin on Wednesday, Aug. 24, said ‘the SRA seems sloppy because we continue to depend on the importation of sugar.’

The SRA is mired in a controversy involving the Sugar Order No. 4 which aims to introduce 300,000 metric tons of imported sugar into the country. Suarez said the importation is allegedly not authorized by President Bongbong Marcos.

"Sa 35 taon na buhay ng SRA, hindi naging maayos ang kondisyon ng ating mga magsasaka ng tubo. Nananatiling mababa ang kanilang mga income at mahirap ang kanilang kabuhayan. (In the 35 years of SRA’s existence, the condition of our sugarcane planters has not improved. Their income has remained very low),” said Suarez.

“In my opinion, the SRA has utterly failed to carry out its mandate to uplift the lives of our sugarcane planters and improve the industry," added Suarez.

During the House Committee on Good Governance and Public Accountability meeting on Monday, Aug. 22, Suarez asked former SRA Administrator Hermenegildo Serafica if the living conditions and state of sugarcane farmers have improved since the creation of the SRA.

Serafica replied to his (Suarez) question ‘No,’ said Suarez.

Under Executive Order No. 18, the mandate of the SRA is to promote the ‘growth and development of the sugar industry through greater participation of the public sector and to improve the working conditions of the laborers,’ Suarez said.

He added that the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2015 also amended the said mandate ‘to promote the competitiveness of the sugarcane industry and maximize the utilization of sugarcane resources and improve the incomes of farmers and farm workers, through improved productivity, product diversification, job generation, and increased efficiency of sugar mills.”

"Malinaw na wala naman nagbago sa buhay ng ating mga magsasaka ng tubo. Hindi umangat ang antas ng kanilang mga buhay. (It is clear that the lives of our sugarcane planters have not changed),” said Suarez.

“On the contrary, their lives seem to have become worse. While already dealing with low production woes because of inclement weather conditions and the Covid-19 pandemic, they also have to constantly compete with imported sugar which has been flooding the local market for years already," lamented Suarez.

"I think it is time that Congress review the mandate and (the) continued existence of the SRA. We can recommend legislative remedies and improve it, or maybe we can even recommend its abolition, whichever would bring more benefit to our sugarcane planters, laborers, and other stakeholders" Suarez stressed