Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, March 22) – The Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (SINAG) said the government should stop favoring smugglers, after public officials approved a recommendation to sell confiscated smuggled sugar in Kadiwa centers.
“Ang concern talaga ng local industry, we are rewarding smugglers, eh. Ibig sabihin, pwede pala ‘yan huhulihin, pero ilalabas din, ibebenta? It sends a wrong signal sa local producers na hirap na hirap mag-produce,” Jayson Cainglet, executive director of SINAG, told CNN Philippines on Wednesday.
[Translation: What concerns the local industry more is that we are rewarding smugglers. Does it make sense to confiscate these items, then eventually sell them? It sends a wrong signal to local producers already struggling to produce.]
President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., who is also secretary of the Department of Agriculture (DA), earlier said the 4,000 metric tons of smuggled refined sugar may be sold in Kadiwa stores at ₱70 per kilogram.
He directed the DA and the Sugar Regulatory Administration to coordinate with concerned agencies to make sure the commodity will undergo the necessary health and food safety checks.
However, SINAG insisted that selling smuggled sugar or any other agricultural produce is against the law.
“Under ng rules natin, ang smuggled items, either you return them to [the] sender or condemn them kasi nga they are smuggled. You don’t know the ownership,” Cainglet said.
[Translation: Under our rules, you should either return the smuggled items to the sender or condemn them for the reason that they are smuggled. You don’t know the ownership.]
The group added it did not see any impact on retail prices of sugar – which are still up to over ₱100 per kilogram – following the entry of imports.
“Kasi ba’t ka pa nag-import? Sabi mo, may kakulangan. Eh, ang sinasabi nga ng stakeholders, milling season pa,” Cainglet pointed out. “Kung ang problema natin ay mapababa ‘yung presyo, ang dapat tingnan natin, how we [can] lower the cost of production.”
