House Speaker Martin Romualdez (center) inspects rice stocks inside a warehouse in Bulacan. (Speaker’s office)

The price cap on rice is a "timely and necessary intervention" from President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. 

Thus, said Speaker Martin Romualdez even as he vowed that the House of Representatives would do its part to mitigate the rising cost of the staple grain. 

"We, in the House of Representatives, stand firmly behind President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s decisive action to ensure every Filipino's access to affordable rice," Romualdez said in a statement Friday, Sept. 1. 

"The imposition of price ceilings on this staple food is a timely and necessary intervention to shield our fellow countrymen from the undue economic burden caused by unwarranted surges in rice prices," the House leader said. 

Through Executive Order (EO) No.39, Marcos set the price ceiling for regular milled rice at P41 per kilo while the mandated price cap for well-milled rice is P45 per kilo. 

These prices are at least P10 to P15 lower than the retail price of rice in Metro Manila markets.

"We deeply understand and empathize with the plight of our people, especially the underprivileged and marginalized who are most affected by the surge in rice prices," Romualdez said. 

"The joint efforts of the Department of Agriculture (DA), the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) in implementing this measure, while simultaneously addressing the challenges brought about by both external global events and internal market manipulations, are highly commendable," he added. 

Romualdez further said: "As part of our oversight function, the House of Representatives is determined to intensify its comprehensive investigation into the alleged hoarding and price manipulation not only of rice but also of other basic agricultural and food products." 

"We believe it is our duty to ensure a steady, stable, and affordable supply of these essential commodities for the Filipino people. The welfare of our constituents remains our top priority, and we pledge to exercise our mandate to safeguard their interests to the fullest," said the Leyte 1st district representative. 

In August, Romualdez took part in two warehouse raids in Bulacan where hundreds of sacks of rice were discovered. He suspects that the rice are being withheld from the local market amid the rising prices in the international market. 

The warehouse raids were initiated by Bureau of Customs (BOC) Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio.