During a virtual meeting, the House panel, chaired by Quezon Rep. Wilfrido Mark Enverga, gave in to the motion made by Negros Occidental Rep. Francisco “Kiko” Benitez calling for the creation of the TWG that will be tasked to look into the measures seeking to benefit the sugarcane industry.

“There is much more issues that we have to thresh out with regards to the development of the sugar industry. It is in my opinion that this is best discussed further and more in detail in a technical working group,” Enverga said before his panel adopted Benitez’s motion.

Among the measures that will be tackled by the Benitez panel are House Bill No. 997, which mandates the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) to include annually, starting 2019, an initial P5-billion supplemental budget; House Bill No. 2971, which seeks to amend SIDA or Republic Act No. 10659 by proportionately allocating expenditures based on productivity and granting the SRA greater oversight and coordinating powers with pertinent government agencies with regard to importation of sugar; and House Resolution No. 225, which zeroes in on the supposed failure of the SRA in the implementation of RA 10659, that caused adverse effects to the sugar industry in general and to the small farmers and workers.

HB 997 is principally authored by Deputy Speaker and 1-Pacman partylist Rep. Michael Romero. The main proponents of HB 2971 and HR 222 are Negros Oriental Rep. Manuel Sagarbarria and Deputy Speaker and Ilocos Sur Rep. Deogracias Victor Savellano, respectively.

During the hearing, the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) and the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) vowed to further look into the measures that call for an increased annual supplemental budget for the SRA.

DBM Supervising Budget and Management Specialist John Castillo urged the panel to “consult” with the DoF “on the available funding sources” that will ensure the implementation of the proposed laws.