By JEN BAYLON

The government’s highly anticipated plan to sell rice at P20 per kilo — a key campaign promise of President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. — will not be implemented immediately, Negros Occidental Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson said yesterday.

“It might take a while. Although the idea was to implement it immediately, I don’t think it can be done immediately,” Lacson said, highlighting the complexity of the undertaking.

Despite the urgency behind the program, Lacson explained that several critical factors still need to be addressed before the plan can be rolled out.

He said one of the biggest challenges is the budget, as the actual market price of rice is around P33 per kilo, but the government intends to sell it to consumers at only P20 per kilo.

“It’s not that we’re gonna bring the price down,” Lacson said.

This creates a P13 per kilo gap that must be subsidized by both the national and local governments, he said.

“I don’t know how that will affect the farmers because we’re buying it at P33, not P20,” Lacson said, reiterating the rice’s market value.

Farmers have raised concerns that the program might lower the buying price of palay, the unhusked rice.

Lacson said the Department of Agriculture (DA) assured him that the rice at P20 per kilo would be freshly milled and not more than three months old, ensuring it is of good quality.

“My instruction was, if this will push through, let’s make sure naman na these are good rice nga edible and not for animals,” Lacson emphasized.

Under the program, P20 per kilo of rice will be sold to indigents — including senior citizens, persons with disabilities and single parents — with the allowed purchase of up to 40 kilos per month.

The DA announced that the initiative, with an initial P3.5 to P4.5 million budget, will be piloted in the Visayan regions, which are most in need of the cheaper rice option, before implementing it nationwide.

The Visayas, including Negros Occidental, is expected to serve as the pilot area, with the program’s expansion dependent on resolving these complex issues.

The scale of the program is massive, as Negros Occidental alone consumes about 1,386,600 bags of rice every two months.

The National Food Authority is expected to find ways to sustain the program, which is not only planned for two months but potentially up to December of this year or longer.

Lacson stressed the need to determine the exact number of rice bags per month and whether the province can sustain and afford the program.

“We even have to identify where the funds will come from,” he said.

“As much as possible, Negros Occidental will do its best to be part of this program,” he added.

The Department of Social Welfare and Development likely already has the information on who the deserving families are.

The governor added that they will have to see what the Commission on Audit will say about this arrangement.

However, the rice will be sold directly to consumers through local government units, which are not traditionally in the business, Lacson pointed out.

“That’s also another challenge because we’re not in the business of selling,” he said./JB, WDJ