NayPyiTaw – President Aquino rejected proposals for the government to adopt a minimum or so-called floor price for cigarettes – which even his economic managers have supported – saying he prefers a deregulated tobacco industry.
“I just heard it now. Can it be done? I think that’s not allowed,” he told reporters in an interview at the Horizon Lake View Resort in this Myanmar capital, where he attended the 25th Association of Southeast Asian Nations Summit.
“I find the concept really strange,” Aquino said, noting that government can only put a cap on prices during calamities. “Kung ikaw may ginagawa kang produkto ibebenta mong palugi, e ‘di malulugi ka eventually.”
“Let the market decide. Pero I go back, iyung on a philosophical basis naman if they’re doing that and they’re still making money, therefore they’re getting it from somewhere,” he pointed out, probably hinting at smuggling.
“Pero hindi puwedeng bumaba ang pagbenta mo ng isang produktong mula dito sa puntong ito. Iyon hindi ako clear,” Aquino said. “Tapos maraming magsasabi na parang mali iyung fixed-pricing on anything.”
“And they’re getting it from somewhere, niloloko ang gobyerno, hindi ko matanggap na susuko iyung gobyerno na gawin iyung trabaho niya,” he said, adding that the Bureau of Customs has already taken measures against suspected cigarette smugglers.
A senior pro-administration lawmaker has filed a measure seeking to stop the dumping of very cheap tobacco in the market by adopting a minimum price for cigarettes that would reduce youth access to tobacco products and ultimately curb smuggling or tax evasion.
Rep. Eleandro Madrona, chairman of the House committee on accounts, said a minimum price would prevent unscrupulous tobacco firms and their agents such as wholesalers and retailers - even smugglers - from offering very cheap cigarettes to the youth.
“Any cigarette manufacturer that sells products at cheap prices by avoiding paying tax is doing so against the laws of the country and is simply producing and selling products at more affordable prices to lure smokers, including the youth,” he said in filing House Bill 5013.