(Eagle News) — Complaints for technical malversation and graft have been filed against high-ranking officials of the National Food Authority.
The complaints filed by Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura against NFA administrator Jason Aquino and Gerry Ambrosio, accounting services department manager, were for their alleged use of P5.1 billion intended as subsidy for its Food and Security Program for other purposes.
According to SINAG, based on a Commission on Audit report, of the P5.1 billion, P3.01 billion were spent to offset previous guarantee fees to Debt Reserve Funds.
Over P2 billion, or P2.09 billion, were used to pay off loans, it said.
“The diversion of the funds have clearly contributed to the substantial across the board escalation of the prices of rice and corn. This increase has obviously affected the industry negatively and has caused undue injury to the public in general,” SINAG president Rosendo Ong So said.
Several senators have called for the abolition of the NFA over what they said was its incompetence to address the rice shortage and rising rice prices.
