January 07, 2015
The Visayan Daily Star
While the proposed Sugarcane Industry Development Act of 2014 is by and large helpful to the industry, there are several toxic provisions in it that will hurt the farmers and the industry unless removed, sugar planter Stephen Chan warned yesterday.
The bill that has been approved at the congressional bicameral committee level is up for ratification in both Houses of Congress and is expected to be signed into law by the President soon, Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez (Neg. Occ., 3 rd District) said earlier.
The title of the Bill is an outright misrepresentation of the industry, Chan said in a letter to the DAILY STAR.
“Our industry has never been referred to as anything else except sugar industry. But SRA wants to mis-represent us as the sugar cane industry for the purpose of expanding its regulatory powers over our sugarcane and molasses,” he said.
He also said there is a “deceptive” inclusion of the Philippine Sugar Research Institute into the bill.
“PHILSURIN is a private entity that the sugar producers were illegally forced to fund. Only recently was it finally discovered and stopped by C.O.A. So now, they are looking for how to get money and they want to get this through 15 percent of the Sugar Fund in the Bill,” he claimed.
He also said there are NASUTRA style controls and coercive powers in the bill.,
“SRA wants "additional powers" to impose for all farmers and truck haulers of sugarcane or sugar to register with SRA. But there is absolutely no practical value for this other than for its coercive powers. Warehouses, Traders and ships may be useful to monitor supply. But farmers and cane haulers?” he asked.
Farmers do not want these despised NASUTRA powers to be imposed on them again.
He also cited VAT on Refined Sugar.
Refined sugar for export enjoys VAT Zero Rating. This system already exists, with a check and balance requiring the B.O.C. to first verify and certify that the sugar has "actually" been exported. However, I know for a fact that SRA has long been looking for ways to by-pass this B.O.C. check point. SRA wants the power to exempt refined sugar on SRA's mere certification that it is "intended" for export, he said.
“As you read now the way Sec. 10 is being worded, you can see this danger that the check and balance of the B.O.C. could now be by-passed. When a system is already in place, one does not bring it up. . .unless the intent is to change it,” he added.
Many are easily mesmerized by the motherhood statements described in the Bill that they fail to see the dangerous provisions, he said.
The truth is that there never was a proper public consultation done with the farmers on this Bill for them to discuss the salient points in its provisions. Only a group of leaders plus a select "hakut" were invited. Less than a fraction of one percent of the farmers have even read the Bill, at its earlier stages or at its later stage, Chan also said.*
Reference link: http://www.visayandailystar.com/2015/January/07/businessnews1.htm