Senator Cynthia Villar, chairman of the Senate agriculture committee, on Monday asked the Department of Agriculture (DA) to impose a price ceiling on onion in areas where prices are unusually high.
In a hearing attended by Agriculture Secretary Manny Piñol, Villar said a price ceiling is different from price control.
“Under price control, you have to declare a state of calamity while in price ceiling you don’t have to,” she said.
According to the Republic Act No. 7581 or the “Price Act,” if the prevailing price of any basic necessity is excessive or unreasonable, the implementing agency may recommend to the President the imposition of a price ceiling other than the prevailing price.
Villar said onion was selling at P120 per kilo in some markets.
Piñol said he presented the idea to the economic managers, but they did not agree.
“They rejected the idea. They said it will not work,” he said, noting that similar measures in the past did not help address rising prices.
Instead, Piñol ordered the importation of additional supplies to bring down commodity prices.