Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon mocked the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) on Friday, Nov. 28 for asserting that ₱500 was ample budget for a Filipino Noche Buena meal.

"Sa anong planeta kasya yung P500 para sa Noche Buena ng pamilyang Pilipino? (On what planet would ₱500 be enough for a Filipino family’s Noche Buena?)" Ridon, chairman of the House Committee on Public Accounts, said in a statement.

His reaction followed statements from DTI Secretary Cristina Roque that a ₱500-budget was enough to purchase ham, macaroni salad, and spaghetti--fixtures of a traditional Filipino Noche Buena--"depending on how many people are eating".

"Hindi ito ang unang beses na iginigiit ng Department of Trade and Industry na sapat ang ₱500 para sa Noche Buena ng isang ordinaryong pamilya. Nagawa na nila ito noon; ang kaibahan lang ngayon, mismong si DTI Secretary Cristina Roque na ang nagsasabing ayos at sapat na ito," Ridon said.

(This is not the first time the Department of Trade and Industry has insisted that ₱500 is sufficient for the Noche Buena of an ordinary family. They have said this before; the only difference now is that it is DTI Secretary Cristina Roque herself who is saying that this amount is fine and enough.)

"Pero alam natin ang itsura ng totoong Noche Buena sa hapag ng pamilyang Pilipino: may spaghetti, may keso, at minsan may hamon kung may sapat na ipon para sa pagdiriwang ng Pasko," he noted.

(But we know what a real Noche Buena looks like on the Filipino family’s table: there’s spaghetti, there’s cheese, and sometimes there’s ham if there are enough savings for the Christmas celebration.)

But Ridon said that at current prices, even a simple spaghetti and cheese no longer fit within the ₱500-budget especially if more than one person in the family is eating.

"Higit pa, wala namang nagsasabing kailangang pagkasyahin sa P500 ang budget para sa Noche Buena Ang mas mahalaga sa mga Pilipino ay ang pagtitiyak ng gobyernong mananatiling mababa at abot-kaya ang presyo ng mga sangkap at pangangailangan para sa pagdiriwang ng Pasko," he further said.

(Moreover, no one is saying that the budget for Noche Buena must be forced into ₱500. What matters more to Filipinos is the assurance that the government will keep the prices of ingredients and essentials low and affordable for the Christmas celebration.)