No plans to abolish NFA yet - Palace

MANILA, Philippines - Malacañang has no concrete plans yet to abolish the National Food Authority despite its P176.7- billion debt.

Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said a formal investigation and audit are underway to determine how to reform the NFA.

“At this point, discussions are preliminary and there is no solid path yet that is laid out on this matter,” she said.

The discussions on NFA were not just focused on the anomalies but on its viability as a whole, Valte said.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said they were weighing the possibility of shutting down the NFA and transfer three of its key functions after the agency disclosed that it was saddled with an estimated P177-billion debt due to excessive rice importation.

However, Sen. Francis Escudero disagrees with the plan of Abad to abolish the debt-saddled agency.

Escudero said the NFA was still serving its purpose especially since the country was not rice sufficient.

Escudero asked economic managers to use the NFA to stabilize market prices and aid the agricultural sector to make it self-sufficient.

“Every people’s need right now is food on their table,” he said.

“The poorest of the Filipino families belong to the agricultural sector. Forty percent of our labor force is directly dependent on agriculture.

“Boosting agricultural sufficiency will lower the cost of doing business in the country and will create a more stable business climate.

“That the present administrators of the NFA found malfeasance in rice importation from the previous administration does not deserve a knee-jerk reaction.”

Escudero said the NFA still serves a purpose and should not be abolished although he agrees that its mandate and processes should be put under audit..

“The NFA system has long been plagued with inefficiencies and corruption but this is not yet the proper time to abolish it.

“The NFA needs a policy overhaul that is relevant with economic realities of the times as we try to correct its flaws and shortcomings.”

The Senate Blue Ribbon committee is also interested to look into the alleged irregularities in the over-importation of rice by the NFA.

President Aquino said the NFA’s P176.7-billion debt was one of the biggest problems he inherited from the past administration and that former NFA officials imported more than what was needed by the country, resulting in the doubling of warehouses from 400 to 800 just to store the rice supply.

NFA administrator Lito Banayo earlier said the imported rice was overpriced by $60 per metric ton over 10 years and during the last three years, the overprice was $125 per metric ton.

On Saturday, Presidential Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma said the National Bureau of Investigation, accountants and procurement professionals were helping the NFA in looking into alleged overpricing and over-importation of rice during the Arroyo administration.