Villar lashes out at ‘cement cartel’

The cement cartel in the country has successfully pushed up cement prices way above their normal value, threatening to stymie the country’s development initiatives, Sen. Manny Villar said yesterday.

"The jacked up prices of cement is a threat to our national development as cement is a vital component in constructing school buildings, farm to market roads, bridges, mass-housing units and other key infrastructure needed to move the economy forward," stressed Villar. He expressed fears that the high cost of cement may lead to suspension or even scrapping of government projects.

Of the country’s total cement consumption, 30 percent is for government infrastructure projects, and another 30 percent is for housing projects both government and private.

"There is no room in our country for profit greedy multi-nationals who have no concern for the nation’s welfare," he added, referring to the four foreign-owned cement companies that control the local market namely Lafarge, Blue Circle, Cemex and Holderbank.

"Infrastructre initiatives needed to chart the nation’s development will not be able to take off with sky-high cement prices as dictated by these greedy firms," Villar said.

From P50 a bag years back, cement now costs P120 to P150 as a result of the manipulative efforts of the foreign firms. Villar pointed out that in other parts of the world, the same product costs only between P40-P80.

The Senate president pro-tempore accused the four firms of having conspired to kill the local cement industry years back by dumping cheap imported cement, then buying out crippled local cement firms, only to take over and dictate prices at present.

"What they are doing is tantamount to economic sabotage. We cannot allow their harmful activities to go on," Villar said.

"Considering that they source their raw materials locally and there is no imported component and no sudden surge in demand, it is perplexing why prices have skyrocketed. "It is clear that their unethical practices that are driven by their greed for profit are harmful not only to consumers but pose a threat to the nation’s development," Villar stressed.