00:00A glut in the supply of local and imported rice, plus lower imported rice tariffs, translate to cheaper costs.
00:07However, rice importers and traders have conspired to keep the distribution under their control to keep prices from falling.
00:15The report from PTV's Noel Talacay.
00:20If the warehouse owners and rice millers in InterCity, Balagtas, Bulacan were to be asked,
00:27they would say the high rice prices in the market cannot and should not be linked directly to them.
00:33Instead, the rice retailers and middlemen in the distribution are clearly to blame.
00:46That's why during their dialogue with the Department of Agriculture or BA, Bureau of Customs or BOC,
00:53and some members of House of Representatives headed by Congressman Erwin Tulfo,
01:00urged them to provide a list of names of repeat wholesale rice customers or buyers.
01:06And these warehouse owners and rice millers in InterCity, Bulacan are more than glad to share names
01:13and information on the purchase and stockpile schemes of these warehouse owners and rice traders.
01:24Representative Janet Garin is eager to hold these middlemen to account for the continued overpricing of rice in the market.
01:41That will not prevent the Kintacom from looking into accountabilities of middlemen who took advantage.
01:50During the dialogue, the rice traders in InterCity, Balagtas, Bulacan
01:54also recommended to let National Food Authority or NFA buy their rice.
02:00They also intended to join the Kadiwa ng Pangulo program and have promised to sell affordable rice
02:07through mobile trucks to be placed at the public markets. This to ensure 40 to 45 pesos of rice per kilo.
02:15We will discuss this with the Kintacom, with our Agria chairman and senior deputy speaker.
02:23All of this will be reported to the speaker and discussed by the House leaders. What do we do with this?
02:31DA Secretary Francisco Tulaurel Jr. and BOC Commissioner Bienvenido Rubio are also present during the dialogue.
02:40These nine rice traders are the owners of rice warehouses and millers in InterCity, Balagtas, Bulacan
02:48that BOC shut down Monday because of alleged rice smuggling from Thailand, Pakistan, and Myanmar.
02:56The Department of Agriculture says that this initiative will help to establish more outlets
03:03of the Rice for All program so that all Filipinos will have access and ensure availability
03:10of affordable rice in the market, especially this Christmas season.
03:15Noel Talapay from the National TV Network for New Better Philippines.
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