BY JED MACAPAGAL and RAYMOND AFRICA
SUGAR industry stakeholders are urging government to conduct an “open and transparent” investigation on the recent entry of sugar imported from Thailand that was not covered by an import order.
This as Senate deputy minority leader Risa Hontiveros, who has questioned the importation and called for a Senate inquiry, said Agriculture Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban violated the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act and the Sugar Regulatory Administration charter when he allowed the importation of sugar.
The sugar industry stakeholders, in a joint statement signed by representatives of National Federation of Sugarcane Planter’s Inc., Confederation of Sugar Producers Association Inc., Philippine Sugar Millers Association Inc. and Panay Federation of Sugarcane Farmers Inc., said the investigation must be “quickly undertaken to establish the facts.”
In the statement dated February 22, the groups said importers and officials involved in the entry and subsequent release of illegal shipments should also be investigated and if determined liable, should answer to the full extent of the law.
“We condemn in the strongest terms any and all acts of sugar smuggling, which constitute economic sabotage that wreak havoc on the livelihood of thousands of sugarcane farmers, 90 percent of whom are agrarian reform beneficiaries and marginal farmers who rely solely on sugar for their sustenance,” the groups further said in the statement.
Hontiveros on Tuesday bared the arrival in the country of 260 units of 20-footer container vans filled with an estimated 5,000 metric tons (MT) of refined sugar in the Port of Batangas last February 9.
She said the shipment arrived before the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) issued Sugar Order (SO) No. 6 on February 15, which allowed the importation of 440,000 metric tons MT of sugar.
Hontiveros also said that based on documents she has obtained, three importers — All Asian Counter Trade Inc., Sucden Philippines Inc. and Edison Lee Marketing Corp. were given import allocations ahead of the release of SO 6.
Panganiban on Wednesday said he “acted with haste” and ordered the importation of sugar by three private firms he chose from a list provided to him, given the urgency brought about by a limited supply of sugar in the country and rising inflation.
Panganiban said he was aware there is an importation procedure being implemented by the SRA but said he only followed the directive issued to him by Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin.
Based on DA’s monitoring of public markets in the National Capital Region, prevailing retail price as of yesterday were at P87 to P110 per kg for refined sugar, P83 to P95 per kg for washed sugar and P80 to P95 per kg for brown sugar.
QUESTIONABLE
Hontiveros, in a statement yesterday, said RA 10845 or the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act penalizes the entry of sugar “valued not below that P1,000,000” into the country with valid permits.
“First, 450,000 metric tons of sugar — the irregular shipment of that size is most likely economic sabotage. That is large-scale agricultural smuggling. Our laws, specifically the Anti-Agricultural Smuggling Act, penalizes such entry of sugar — valued not below than P1,000,000 — into the country with valid permits,” Hontiveros said.
She also said handpicking the three suppliers is “highly questionable.”
“Imagine three companies alone — which were handpicked — were given the go-signal to import all the sugar needed by the entire country. Isn’t this highly questionable? Isn’t this how cartels are formed? How can this be anything but ‘government-sponsored smuggling’?” she said.
“The people will not be convinced by the excuses and dizzying explanations.”
Hontiveros also said Panganiban’s admission that the basis for his action was not a sugar order from the SRA, but only a memo from the Office of the Executive Secretary, is a violation of EO No. 18, Series of 1986 which is provided for in the SRA charter.
“Only the SRA — and not Panganiban on his own — has the authority to issue permits and licenses like the sugar order allowing the import of sugar,” she said.
“So, when the DA Senior Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban yesterday (Wednesday) admitted freely that they were the ones who handpicked and ordered the three companies to import sugar, we hope they are ready to face serious criminal and administrative charges,” she said.
Hontiveros said it was just seven months since the fiasco on Sugar Order No. 4 hogged the headlines and yet “do we have another fiasco here?”
SO No. 4 would have allowed the importation of 300,000 MT of sugar last year but Malacañang said it was illegal as the order did not bear the signature of President Marcos.
Hontiveros said the truth behind these sugar importation mess should be uncovered.
Hontiveros said it is high time that Marcos lead the signing of an above-board sugar order in relation to past sugar orders authorizing multiple importers to import sugar to stabilize the price of sugar in the market.
She said by her office’s estimation, the suggested retail price of sugar should have gone down to P60 per kilo.
“The thing is, the valid importation of 440,000 metric tons of sugar — one which did not pass through any cartel — can help a lot in bringing down the price of sugar to P60 per kilo… But if cartels are allowed to thrive and profit, this will only result in more kickbacks, shady deals, and corruption. Sugar prices will not go down,” she said.
