Palace surprised by ex-NFA chief’s attendance at council meet

MANILA, Philippines — Malacañang was surprised by reports that National Food Authority administrator Jason Aquino was present during a recent meeting of the NFA Council even after he had already left the agency.

Presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. said there is no power vacuum in the state grains agency despite Aquino’s departure because the NFA deputy administrator can take over.

“I’m so surprised, because I got a complaint that he was again objecting to the importation by (the Philippine International Trading Corp.) And I was saying, why he’s still there? I think it was clear from the President’s mouth that he has accepted the resignation of Jason Aquino,” Roque told CNN Philippines yesterday.

“I think it’s just courtesy, people should have said, ‘What are you doing here?’” he added.

Asked if Aquino is on his way out, Roque replied, “I think he is out.”

“Even if the President may be fond of him for whatever reason, the President knows that this rice crisis could have been prevented had the NFA done its job. The NFA should have bought rice, because it had the funds to do so; at that time, it should have bought rice, harvest season – it did not, which prompted the NFA to import,” he added.

Aquino and NFA accounting services manager Gerry Ambrosio have been charged with technical malversation and violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act before the Office of the Ombudsman for allegedly diverting funds intended for food security.

The Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura, the group that filed the complaint, cited a report by the Commission on Audit (COA) stating that the NFA used P5.1 billion worth of food security funds to settle debts.

Earlier this month, President Duterte said Aquino had expressed his intention to leave the NFA because of disagreements with fellow officials.

Last Monday, opposition Sen. Risa Hontiveros tagged Aquino in a corruption scheme, where importers pay P100 to P150 per bag of rice to secure a certificate of eligibility to import rice under the minimum access volume.

Roque, however, dismissed Hontiveros’ claim as “political grandstanding.”

“I hope she’s able to prove her allegations, but knowing Sen. Risa Hontiveros, I doubt if she can,” he said.

“What I have said is (that) the liability of the NFA is based on a COA report already; not just speculations, something that need not be proven anymore because the COA has actually proven it,” he added.

Nevertheless, Roque believes there are enough grounds to hold Aquino liable for graft and technical malversation because of the former NFA chief’s failure to buy rice.

‘Raise palay-buying price’

While he is against the proposed abolition of the NFA, Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles yesterday urged the state agency to increase its palay-buying price from P17 to P22 per kilo.

He told the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum at Café Adriatico in Malate, Manila that the P5 increase would enable the NFA to compete with private traders in procuring palay.

“If they are able to gather enough buffer stocks and pour in all those stocks in the market, the prices of commercial rice would no longer be that high because traders will be forced to compete with the NFA price,” he said.

The state agency is selling the staple at P27 to P32 per kilo, while commercial stocks were retailing for as much as P55-P60 per kilo, according to Nograles. – With Jess Diaz