House Minority Leader 4Ps Party-list Rep. Marcelino "Nonoy" Libanan says P20 per kilo rice remains an "unreachable dream" for many Filipinos despite President Marcos' pronouncements in his fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA).

Libanan, in his traditional contra-SONA on Monday, Aug. 4, cited the gap between the government’s promises and market conditions as they pertain to the cost of basic goods.

“The President promised ₱20 per kilo rice. But in reality, consumers still face prices of ₱45 to ₱60. For many Filipinos, this dream is still out of reach,” he said. Rice is the Filipino staple food.

Libanan called for a comprehensive and long-term national agricultural plan—not just temporary price controls or increased imports.

“We must invest in our farmers, rural productivity, and food sovereignty. The solution must come from the strength of our own harvests,” said the leader of "fiscalizers" bloc in the House of Representatives.

President Marcos said in his SONA last July 28: "Sa mga nagtatanong kung nasaan na ang beinte pesos na bigas? Ito ang aking tugon. Napatunayan natin na kaya na natin ang beinte pesos sa bawat kilo ng bigas, nang hindi malulugi ang mga magsasaka."

(To those asking where the P20-per-kilo rice? this is my answer. We’ve proven that we can achieve P20 per kilo of rice without causing farmers to incur losses.)

Marcos boasted that the program was already successfully piloted across Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao in areas including San Juan in Pangasinan, Cavite, Occidental Mindoro, Cebu, Bacolod, Guimaras, Siquijor, and Davao del Sur.

Suffice it to say that Libanan wants the administration to do more, until most Filipinos get to enjoy Marcos' campaign promise of P20-per-kilo rice.

“While we welcome the President’s appeal for unity, genuine unity must be rooted in meeting the people's most urgent needs—not in political convenience,” Libanan said.

He acknowledged the administration’s focus on economic growth, infrastructure, and social programs, but said these gains “must be felt at the grassroots, not just measured in numbers".

Citing official data, Libanan noted that while poverty incidence dropped from 18.1 percent in 2021 to 15.5 percent in 2023, nearly 17.5 million Filipinos remain poor.

More striking, he pointed to a June 2025 SWS survey showing that 49 percent of Filipino families still consider themselves poor, highlighting the deep disconnect between economic indicators and lived realities.