Quezon 1st district Rep. Wilfrido Mark Enverga (left) and Leah Cruz. (Contributed photo, HREP website)

The House Committee on Agriculture and Food will continue its hearing on the agricultural hoarding-slash-price manipulation issue in May 11.

This was confirmed by committee chairman, Quezon 1st district Rep. Wilfrido Mark Enverga ahead of the May 8 resumption of sessions in the House of Representatives. The House members are on the tail end of their five-week summer recess.

Last March 21, the Enverga panel held its fifth hearing on the issue, which was ordered by House Speaker Martin Romualdez in order to pinpoint the reason for the absurdly high prices of onions (sibuyas) in late 2022.

However, most of the invited resource persons failed to attend the proceedings as they all inexplicably fell ill or underwent medical procedures at that time.

One of them was "Sibuyas Queen" Leah Cruz, who became the focal personality in the House inquiry because of allegations by her fellow resource persons, which included farmers and middlemen.

Cruz, 47, was confined at Metropolitan Medical Center in Sta. Cruz, Manila on March 19.

"We just hope that she attends the hearing [on May 11]," said Cavite 4th district Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr., who has been one of the more active participants in the investigation that began last February.

Of the five hearings so far, the self-described "agripreneur" Cruz only attended the first two.

Enverga had earlier said that its important for the invited individuals to be present in the hearings.

"May pasubali na nga kami ano to some of the resource persons na nagpakita noong huli na in the event they do not appear with no valid reason, they can be cited for contempt (We've already warned some of the resource persons that in the event they do not appear with no valid reason, they can be cited for contempt)," he said.

A total of five resource persons who appeared before the House panel but were deemed lying and uncooperative have already been cited for contempt by the solons. As penalty, they were detained for several days at the House of Representatives.