MANILA - Citing the supremacy of public welfare in times of calamity, President Arroyo has authorized the National Food Authority (NFA), Food Terminal Inc. (FTI) and the Philippine International Trading Corp. (PITC) to intervene in stabilizing food supply and prices of basic commodities, including pork and chicken, for the rest of the year.

Under Executive Order (EO) 834, which the President signed on October 15, (the order was only released to the media on Tuesday), the Chief Executive authorized Agriculture Secretary Arthur Yap to determine the “reasonable volume” of pork and/or chicken imports to the country to ensure stable supply and prices.

“The National Food Authority, Food Terminal Incorp, and the Philippine International Trading Corp., are hereby authorized to include in their commodity coverage basic food items other than staple cereals, which they may deem necessary to stabilize the country’s basic food-commodity supply and prices,” stated EO 834, which takes effect immediately until December 31, 2009.

To carry out the President’s directive, the 3 agencies, through their respective boards or councils, “are authorized to use their corporate funds, manpower and other facilities, government-guaranteed credit lines and supplemental government support, as they may deem necessary.”

The order added: “All disbursements as well as administrative and operational expenses incurred by virtue hereof shall be treated as a Special Projects Account subject to the usual accounting and auditing rules and regulations. All importation pursuant to the provisions of EO 834 shall be eligible for application on the Tax Expenditure Subsidy scheme.”

On the subject of minimum access volume (MAV), EO 834 provides that “outstanding volumes not allocated” under the MAV pertaining to pork and/or chicken “shall be distributed to the private sector under guidelines and procedures promulgated under the existing rules governing the implementation of the country’s minimum-access commitments.”

The EO added: “Special Safeguard Duties on chicken meat and or products may be lifted to encourage private sector importation under guidelines and procedures to be released by the Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Finance/Bureau of Customs.”

EO 834 cites as legal basis Section 3 of Executive Order 1028 Series of 1985 which states that “the President may, for stabilization purposes, authorize the intervention by the appropriate government entities in the trading of other food items if so warranted by conditions as may exist from time to time.”

The NFA, FTI and PITC were deemed as the “most appropriate government agencies to intervene in the stabilization of basic food items,” considering “their capability and experience in the marketing of grains and nongrain commodities.”

EO 834 authorizes the agriculture secretary “to determine the reasonable volume of pork and/or chicken that will be imported within the purview of the EO.”

EO 834 enjoins all national government agencies to extend full support to the Department of Agriculture for the implementation of EO 834, particularly the Department of Trade and Industry, Department of Finance, Department of Budget and Management, Department of Justice, and the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel.

Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Gary Olivar said that EO 834 is “consistent with” the President’s “desire to appropriately protect the people’s welfare during the state of calamity in this part of the country,” and to “protect our people from speculative behavior on the pricing of food.”

If there is enough supply, “this [EO 834] will keep prices down,” Deputy Presidential Spokesperson Lorelei Fajardo said.

In issuing EO 834, the President said, “In times of national emergency or calamity, the welfare of the people becomes the supreme law.”