SUMMARY
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MANILA, Philippines – President Rodrigo Duterte found a way to make light of the rice crisis during his speech on Thursday, September 27.
In front of new Career Executive Service Officers, Duterte floated an alternative reason for the shortage of affordable rice.
“Ngayon na marami nang na-rehab, kaya tayo nagkaroon ng rice crisis. Kumakain na ang mga ulol (Now that many drug addicts have undergone rehabilitation, we have a rice crisis. Because the fools are eating again),” he said.
Before this, Duterte described drug addicts who surrendered to police as thin and malnourished since they did nothing but take drugs.
He said at the Palace event that the government must learn how to better manage rice supplies to ensure they meet the needs of Filipinos “especially the innocent and the good ones.”
The President made the remarks as Filipino households, particularly poor families, bear the brunt of soaring prices of basic goods, like rice, vegetables, and fuel.
His administration’s bloody campaign against illegal drugs has also hit the poorest Filipinos the hardest, as Duterte himself admitted, calling shabu the “poor man’s drug.”
That day, Pulse Asia Research, Incorporated released its latest survey showing that a majority of Filipinos disapprove of how the Duterte government has handled inflation, which hit a 9-year high in August. Duterte got his lowest approval and trust ratings in September, based on another Pulse Asia survey released last week.
Duterte made his joke about rice woes around the same time his economic managers were in the United Kingdom to promote the Philippines to British investors.
Earlier on Thursday, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque defended the trip from criticism that it was ill-timed because of soaring inflation.
To address inflation, Duterte approved recommendations of his Cabinet’s economic cluster and signed an administrative order cutting red tape in the importation of agricultural products.
He had also green-lighted the importation of rice to restore the nearly depleted National Food Authority stocks. However, rice prices remain high, supposedly due to distribution issues. – Rappler.com
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