(CHRISTIAN DALE)
HINIHINTAY ng Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) ang go signal ni Pangulong Ferdinand Marcos Jr. para sa plano nitong mag-angkat ng 440,000 metriko toneladang asukal.
Ito ay dahil si Pangulong Marcos Jr. ang umuupong chairman ng SRA Board sa kanyang kapasidad bilang Kalihim ng Department of Agriculture.
“Yesterday, we all signed the sugar order and that will be sent to Malacañang for final approval,” ayon kay SRA Board member Pablo Azcona.
“The import order was divided into three tranches — 100,000 [MT], 100,000 [MT], and buffer stock of 240,000 [MT],” dagdag na wika ni Azcona.
Ang mga miyembro ng SRA Board, governing body ng SRA, ay kinabibilangan nina Azcona bilang kinatawan ng sugar planters, Board member Ma. Mitzi Mangwag bilang kinatawan ng sugar millers, at SRA Administrator David John Thaddeus Alba bilang vice-chairperson.
Sinabi ni Azcona na si Senior Agriculture Undersecretary Domingo Panganiban ang tumayong kinatawan ni Pangulong Marcos sa Board.
“For upcoming orders, we respectfully send it to the President so that he is very well informed. Before we release it, it is always nice to have his input,” ani Azcona.
“Go-signal siguro ‘yun because I don’t know if he will sign in personally eh,” aniya pa rin.
Sa pagdating naman sa bansa ng 440,000 MT ng imported sugar, sinabi ng SRA Board official na ang unang 100,000 MT ay inaasahang darating sa lalong madaling panahon.
“[B]ut all of the three arrivals po, they are all arriving as reserve,” ayon kay Azcona.
Ang dahilan naman ng SRA sa pag-angkat ng asukal ay bunsod ng inaasahan ng ahensiya na paglobo ng local demand.
“For this year, we are expecting a projected production of 1.831 million [MT]… but our demand is a lot more. We feel that the 440,000 [MT] is just right to cover this year’s lack of sugar,” ang pahayag ni Azcona.
“This will cover from now until we begin milling next year,” anito.
Layon din ng pag-angkat ang pigilin ang pagtaas ng presyo mula sa supply-demand shocks.
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