FINANCE Secretary Carlos Dominguez III expects the Congress to pass soon the rice tariffication bill after President Rodrigo Duterte last week declared the proposal to liberalize rice imports an urgent and priority measure.
Dominguez said over the weekend that liberalizing rice imports through the passage into law of the bill currently pending in Congress would be vital in helping low-income households cope with inflation, given that rice accounts for 20 percent of their consumption.
He said the liberal imports would cause inflation to slow down and bring down prices of rice by as much as P7 per kilo.
“Along with a national ID system, the passage of the rice tariffication bill will complement the social mitigation measures we are implementing now to further ease the impact of inflation on poor households,” Dominguez said.
The House of Representatives appropriations committee has already approved the funding provision for the consolidated version of the rice tariffication bill.