SAYING the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) completely failed to uplift the lives of sugarcane farmers, an administration lawmaker yesterday called for a review of the agency’s performance amid controversy hounding its plan to import 300,000 metric tons of sugar.
The import plan was rejected earlier this month by President Marcos Jr. who has also announced he was reorganizing the agency amid a perceived shortage and an increase in prizes of the commodity. The government has been inspecting warehouses of suspected sugar hoarders or smugglers.
Quezon Rep. David Jayjay Suarez said the House should look into the mandate of the SRA to establish if it has served its purpose under Executive Order No. 18 and Republic Act 10659, or the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2015.
Suarez said the SRA seemed to have failed in carrying out its purpose, noting the sugarcane industry has remained dependent on importation to address local supply shortage. He also pointed to the current mess involving the issuance of an unauthorized order that would have allowed 300,000 metric tons of sugar to flood the local market.
“Sa 35 taon na buhay ng SRA, hindi naging maayos ang kondisyon ng ating mga magsasaka ng tubo. Nananatiling mababa ang kanilang mga income at mahirap ang kanilang kabuhayan (During SRA’s 35 years of existence, the lives of sugarcane farmers didn’t improve. Their income remained low and their lives, difficult). In my opinion, the SRA has utterly failed to carry out its mandate to uplift the lives of our sugarcane planters and improve the industry,” Suarez said.
The lawmaker was referring to the admission of resigned SRA administrator Hermenegildo Serafica during a recent joint hearing of the House committee on good governance and public accountability and on agriculture on the sugar importation controversy.
The SRA is being investigated after resigned Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian, who sat as SRA chair on behalf of the President who is concurrent agriculture secretary, signed Sugar Order No. 4 to import 300,00 MT of sugar without the President’s authority.
In the same hearing, Suarez asked Serafica if the circumstances of sugarcane farmers have become better following the creation of the SRA.
“Sa 35 years na buhay ng SRA, gumanda ba ang buhay ng magsasakang tubo? (During the SRA’s 35 years of existence, did the lives of farmers improve?” he asked Serafica, who replied: “No.”
Under Executive Order No. 18 dated May 28, 1986, which created the SRA, the agency is mandated to promote the growth and development of the sugar industry through greater participation of the private sector. It is also tasked to improve the working conditions of the laborers.
On the other hand, RA 10659 or the Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2015 said it is the SRA’s function to promote the competitiveness of the sugarcane industry, maximize the use of sugarcane resources, and improve the income of farmers and farm workers, through improved productivity, product diversification, job generation, and increased efficiency of sugar mills.
“While already dealing with low production woes because of inclement weather conditions and the COVID-19 pandemic, they (farmers) also have to constantly compete with imported sugar which have been flooding the local market for years already,” Suarez said.
“I think it is time that Congress review the mandate and continued existence of the SRA. We can recommend legislative remedies and improve it, or maybe we can even recommend its abolition, whichever would bring more benefit to our sugarcane planters, laborers and other stakeholders,” he added.
