The Department of Agriculture (DA) has until Friday, Jan. 13, to explain the shortage in the market, “price manipulation,” and the proposed importation of onions “despite the approaching harvest season by local farmers.”
The Jan. 13 deadline was a result of the receipt by the DA of the Office of the Ombudsman’s (OMB) order which effectively started the fact-finding investigation into the supply, spiraling prices, importation of onions.
The order dated last Jan. 9, 2023 was received by the DA last Jan. 10. It gave the DA, through Senior Undersecretary Domingo F. Panganiban, a non-extendible period of three days from receipt to submit “sworn comment together with the corresponding supporting documents....”
In its order to Panganiban, the OMB said: “This pertains to the recently publicized issues on the alleged shortage of supply of onions in the Philippine markets and its price manipulation, the questionable procurement of onions by the Food Terminal, Inc. from a multipurpose cooperative, and the proposed importation of onions by the Department of Agriculture.”
The order was signed by Graft Investigation and Prosecution Officers Winston D. Oscaris, Albert T. Leynes, and Ryan O. Silvestre “by authority of the Ombudsman.”
The order was the inquiry letter referred to last Tuesday, Jan. 10, by Ombudsman Samuel R. Martires.
Under Article XI of the Constitution and Republic Act No. 6770, the OMB can investigate on its own even without a complaint “any act or omission of any public officer or employee, office or agency, when such act or omission appears to be illegal, unjust, improper or inefficient.”
The OMB can also “direct, upon complaint or at its own instance, any officer or employee of the Government, or of any subdivision, agency or instrumentality thereof, as well as any government-owned or controlled corporations with original charter, to perform and expedite any act or duty required by law, or to stop, prevent, and correct any abuse or impropriety in the performance of duties.”
News reports stated that Ombudsman Martires will probe the DA and the FTI’s procurement of onions at P537 per kilo from a cooperative.
He was quoted at saying that his office will investigate the high procurement cost while the same onions were being sold at Kadiwa stores for P170 per kilo.
Earlier, militant congressmen had called on the House of Representatives’ Committee on Agriculture and Food to conduct an inquiry, in aid of legislation, on what they described as the “potential overpricing and price manipulation of onions in the market.”
Makabayan bloc members ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro, Gabriela Party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas, and Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel filed House Resolution (HR) No.673 to pave the way for the probe.
In the resolution, the congressmen said that “as of September to October 2022, the price of white onion began to tremendously increase, with the cost per kilogram rising to around P300 to P400.”
“As of Dec. 28, 2022, the Department of Agriculture (DA) reported that the price of local red onions was between P500 to P720 per kilogram, while the price of local white onions was P800 per kilogram,” it stated.
It also stated that “such price level of onions surpassed the highest daily minimum wage in the country at P570, and was way higher than the per-kilogram cost of pork in the market”.
The congressmen alleged that the huge discrepancy between farm gate price and retail price “indicates potential price manipulation which makes onions more expensive.”
DA Deputy Spokesperson and Assistant Secretary Rex Estoperez was quoting as saying that the market only needs 21,060 MT of onions to fill the supply gap. The government will import 17,100 metric tons of red onions, and 3,960 metric tons of yellow onions, he said.
TAGS: #Onions #DA #OMB on onions