House of Representatives (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

Are we looking at another fertilizer scam?

Pangasinan 2nd district Rep. Mark Cojuangco is calling for a congressional probe on the Department of Agriculture's (DA) rather questionable choice to use biofertilizers instead of the cheaper urea to increase rice production.

He made this call in a short privilege speech Monday, May 8, which coincided with the return of sessions at the House of Representatives.

“Ang akin po sana magkaroon ng hearing tungkol po dito sa biofertilizers na ito at usisain po natin mabuti (For me, there should be a hearing about these biofertilizers and we should study this carefully),” Cojuangco said.

“In the past, fertilizers scams have been centered around this kind of biofertilizers, and so I would like us, the Philippines, to be very careful in the expenditure of these kinds of monies for the purchase of something which is not sure to benefit our farmers," he noted.

Cojuangco's main issue is the supposed enormous price difference between urea and biofertilizers, with the latter being very costly in comparison.

According to the Pangasinan lawmaker, a 50-kilo bag of urea costs P1,230, down from P2,500.

“Ito pong pagkakaintindi ko, baka naman nagkakamali po ako na biofertilizers is only five grams po—isang paketeng maliit and hindi ko po alam kung tama o mali itong presyong ito but P6,000 per packet (From what I understand, and I could be mistaken, but a small packet of biofertilizers weighing only five grams--I don't know it this is correct or wrong--costs P6,000),” Cojuangco said.

He said that the nitrogen content of urea is 46 percent, while biofertilizers only have 1 percent. Farmers would only need two bags of urea to fertilize one hectare of rice field, he said.

Cojuangco said the DA is planning to purchase up to P2.5 billion worth of biofertilizers.

Biofertilizers contain living microorganisms that when applied to seeds, plant surfaces, or soil colonize the rhizosphere or the interior of the plant and promote growth by increasing the supply or availability of nutrients to the host plant.

Perhaps the most infamous fertilizer scam is 2004 Fertilizer Fund Scam, where it was alleged that former DA Undersecretary Jocelyn Bolante diverted P728 million in fertilizer funds to the 2004 election campaign of then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

The Office of the Ombudsman dismissed the case against Arroyo on May 2, 2014.