Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, July 18) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said his administration is doing “everything” to achieve his 2022 campaign promise to slash the price of rice to ₱20 a kilo.
On Monday, the president acknowledged that he has yet to fulfill his commitment.“Iyon pa rin ‘yung ating hangarin na ₱20 na bigas ay wala pa tayo roon pero ginagawa natin ang lahat,” he said in his speech following the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement for the Kadiwa ng Pangulo with local government units.[Translation: Our goal is to reduce the per kilo price of rice to ₱20, we have yet to hit that but we’re doing everything.]As of July 17, data from the Department of Agriculture showed that the per kilogram price of rice ranges from ₱36 to ₱48.Marcos said the expansion of the Kadiwa ng Pangulo across the Philippines could decrease the prices of agricultural products as it eliminates middlemen.“Ang programa ng Kadiwa ay napakasimple lamang at tayo ay ginagawa natin ay pinalalapit natin sa magsasaka ang palengke. Kaya’t ‘yung mga middleman, ‘yung mga added cost ay binabawasan natin nang husto ‘yan. Sa ganyang paraan ay maipagbili natin ng presyo na mababa,” he said.
