ILOILO City – The cash assistance to micro rice retailers in Western Visayas affected by the government-imposed price ceiling will be rolled out this week.
President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., through Executive Order (EO) No. 39 issued on Aug. 31, ordered the price cap for rice amid soaring commodity prices. Regular milled rice (RMR) is set at P41 per kilogram, while the cap for well-milled rice (WMR) is P45 per kilogram.
The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) Region 6 said it is still waiting for the guidelines from the central office on the process, documentary requirements and priority of the rollout.
“There are no guidelines yet. Hopefully next week makagwa na,” DSWD-6 director Carmelo Nochete told Panay News on Saturday, Sept. 9.
At the same time, they are also waiting for the profiles of rice retailers from the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) and the Department of Agriculture (DA).
The DTI was mandated to profile rice retailers in malls, groceries and establishments, while the DA will profile rice retailers in wet markets, public markets, and various sari-sari stores from the municipal level down to the barangay level.
Where will the budget come from?
According to Nochete, the budget will come from DSWD’s central office.
The director added they could only determine how much is needed for the financial assistance once DTI and DA submit the retailers’ profiles.
Nochete said in other parts of the country, such as the cities of Quezon, San Juan and Caloocan in Metro Manila, releasing of cash aid had already begun.
In a separate interview, DTI-6 officer-in-charge director Ermelinda P. Pollentes confirmed their ongoing validation and profiling.
“Ongoing pa ang pag-validate namon,” Pollentes told Panay News.
DTI and DA are handing out forms to retailers, asking for, among others, the following data:
* stocks on hand
* source of supply
* how long do supplies last
* prices offered by wholesalers
* estimated possible losses incurred
The profiling of rice retailers in the region began on Sept. 5.
Based on the DTI guidelines, a copy of which was furnished to the DSWD, a subsidy in the amount of P15,000 will be released by single payment under the following conditions:
* Retailers with license issued by the Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO) and are engaged in the actual sale or offering for sale RMR and WMR within price ceiling at the time of surveillance or monitoring activity;
* Retailers who are registered under the DTI as sole proprietors and retailers who are registered under the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as partnerships and corporations and are engaged in the actual sale or offering for sale RMR and WMR within price ceiling at the time of surveillance or monitoring activity;
* Unlicensed retailers engaged in the actual sale or offering for sale of RMR and WMR within price ceiling, as validated by the concerned DTI office at the time of surveillance or monitoring activity; and
* Unlicensed retailers as validated by the market masters and/or verified by the relevant DTI office after presentation of proof of actual selling of RMR and WMR within price ceiling at the time of effectivity of EO 39.
According to the DTI guidelines, “any rice retailer who meets the above criteria but is found to have violated EO 39 during the surveillance or monitoring activity by the concerned DTI office must submit additional proof of actual sale of RMR and WMR within the mandated price ceiling for a period of seven days from the date of commission of the violation.”
For rice retailers located in the National Capital Region (NCR), the DTI Fair Trade Enforcement Bureau (DTI-FTEB) shall be the lead DTI office in preparing the list of qualified recipients based on the listed eligibility criteria.
For rice retailers located outside of the NCR, the DTI Regional Operations Group (DTI-ROG) shall be the lead office in preparing the list of qualified recipients based on the listed eligibility criteria.
Sari-sari stores located outside of wet markets and public markets are eligible for a P5,000 SLP subsidy to be released in single payment under the following conditions:
* Sari-Sari stores with license issued by the Business Permits and Licensing Office (BPLO) and/or are registered with DTI as a sole proprietor, and are engaged in the actual sale or offering for sale RMR and WMR within price ceiling at the time of surveillance or monitoring activity; and
* Unlicensed sari-store stores engaged in the actual sale or offering for sale RMR and WMR within price ceiling at the time of surveillance or monitoring activity of the concerned DTI office.
“Any sari-sari store that meets the above criteria but is found to have violated EO 39 during the surveillance or monitoring activity by the concerned DTI office shall be required to submit additional proof of actual sale of RMR and WMR within the mandated price ceiling for a period of three days from the date of commission of the violation,” read part of the DTI guidelines.
The amount of P5,000 has been calculated as the maximum amount allowed to compensate sari-sari stores for losses incurred for at least seven days from the effectivity of EO 39.
The DTI Bureau of Small and Medium Enterprise Development shall be the lead office in preparing the list of qualified sari-sari store recipients based on the listed eligibility criteria./PN
