Nueva Ecija 1st district Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing (Ellson Quismorio/ MANILA BULLETIN)

Even an author of the 2019 Rice Tarrification Law (RTL) in the House of Representatives has admitted the need to amend the controversial statute, if only to ease the burden on poor Filipinos.

Assistant Majority Leader Nueva Ecija 1st district Rep. Mikaela Angela Suansing reckoned that Republic Act (RA) No.11203 must be revisited “because we’ve seen the impact of it, the tangible impact of it to the Filipino consumers". Nueva Ecija is top rice producing province.

Suansing gave this remark in reaction to Senator Cynthia Villar's opposition to the proposal to amend RTL, with the latter saying that it can revive corruption, particularly at the National Food Authority (NFA). The RTL was Villar's pet measure.

Suansing and her fellow House members who are calling for RTL amendments want to do so in order to restore NFA's power to direct sell cheaper rice in the market. They believe this will give the poor access to rice that they can actually afford to buy.

No less than House Speaker Martin Romualdez is leading the effort. He said that this would result to rice P10 to P15 cheaper than what is currently on the market.

“Maraming paraan para panagutin ‘yung NFA [sa corruption]. Ngayon po na i-introduce namin ‘yung amendments, pwede naming kasi siyang i-craft yung mismong provision at ‘yung implementing rules and regulations such that ma-limit yung access ng NFA in the parts of the processes that may solicit corruption on their part," said Suansing.

(There's are a lot of ways to address corruption in NFA. When we introduce the amendments, we can craft the actual provision and implementing rules and regulations such that NFA's access to parts of the processes that may solicit corruption would get limited.)

"So may nakikita po kaming paraan na maaari nating maibalik yung mandato ng NFA na makabenta ng bigas ng direkta sa merkado and at the same time kaya po natin na i-limit in such a way na hindi po prone to corruption,” said the solon, who took up her Masters at Harvard University.

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https://mb.com.ph/2024/5/3/poor-pinoys-need-cheaper-rice-solons-react-to-cynthia-villar-s-rejection-of-rice-tarrification-law-revision

(We see a way to restore NFA's mandate to directly sell rice to the market and at the same time limit it in such a way that it's not prone to corruption.)

Suansing stressed: “And babalik po tayo na ang talagang objective natin ay matulungan ‘yung mga Pilipino lalo na po ‘yung mga mahihirap na pamilya na mag karoon po ng abilidad na bumili ng bigas sa mas affordable na halaga."

(And we go back to our real objective which is the help the Filipinos, especially the poor families, to buy rice at an affordable price.)

"Kung ano man ‘yung mga nangyayari sa NFA hindi dapat ito ‘yung maging dahilan na tanggalin natin ‘yung NFA rice at mawalan ng access ‘yung mga Pilipino sa mas murang bigas,” she said.

(Whatever is happening at NFA, this should not be the reason to remove NFA rice from the market and strip Filipinos of their access to cheaper rice.)