The Philippine Iron and Steel Institute (PISI) has raised concerns over the prevalence of substandard rebars in Mindanao and Northern Luzon.
Following a series of random test purchases, PISI reported the discovery of inferior rebars in both regions, highlighting the need to intensify government efforts.
According to PISI's findings, the substandard rebars are sufficient to construct over 10,000 houses per month, endangering the lives of up to 30,000 people.
For this reaspon, the industry has called upon the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to conduct a surveillance audit of the companies producing and distributing these inferior rebars.
In Mindanao, PISI conducted random purchases of rebars from various hardware stores in Davao del Sur, Davao del Norte, Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Zamboanga del Norte, Samal Island, Cotabato City, Pagadian City, and Iligan City from Sept. 9 to 13.
Laboratory tests revealed that rebars from Davao Mighty Steel, Philippine Sanjia Steel, and Keim Hing Steel failed to meet the required standards.
PISI's report indicated that the Mindanao rebars were deficient in weight and prone to brittleness, mirroring the findings for the Northern Luzon rebars tested by the Bureau of Philippine Standards (BPS) Testing Laboratory in Cavite.
In collaboration with the DTI, PISI has conducted these test purchases to safeguard public safety and ensure that only high-quality steel products are available in the market.