Duterte endorses Tawi-Tawi barter trading center

After so much confusion and sometimes deliberate misinterpretation of my earlier proposal to establish a Rice Trading Center in Tawitawi to stop rice smuggling and ensure supply in the ZAMBASULTA area, everything has been clarified by no less than President Rody Duterte himself.President Duterte said he supports the re-establishment of the Barter Trading Center in Tawitawi and of bringing in rice from Sabah to supply the needs of the people in the islands provided it follows legal processes.He also directed Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez to implement immediately the Barter Trade System in the southern islands where people have traditionally traded with their relatives in Sabah.During a one-on-one interview aired live on Philippine television yesterday the President said that he initially failed to grasp the context of the issue about legalizing rice smuggling. What Piñol actually meant was to bring in rice legally, he said.In a press conference before he left for Israel and Jordan, President Duterte was asked by a PTV4 reporter for his reaction to my alleged proposal to legalize rice smuggling. Expectedly, the President responded by saying that smuggling of any form will ruin the economy.After the One-on-One interview, I approached the President and apologized for the confusion that my statement about legalizing the entry of rice in the ZAMBASULTA area caused. I'm sorry Sir. I believe I did not get the message across very clearly, I told the President. That's okey. It's not your fault. You meant well and you were in a hurry, the President answered.Critics of the administration and some media organizations slanted my statement to make it appear that I was proposing the legalization of rice smuggling. During the closed-door meeting of the Economic Managers with the President which I attended, I was given the opportunity to explain the context of my proposal to establish a Rice Trading Center in Tawi-Tawi.The proposal was an offshoot of my trip to Zamboanga City, Tawitawi and Sulu at the height of the rice crisis following the closure by the Malaysian government of its ports to rice smugglers.The rice shipped in from Sabah actually comes from either Thailand and Vietnam. This is brought in by kumpits, the traditional wooden boats of the islands, using the ports of Labuan and Sandakan as transhipment points.The ZAMBASULTA area has relied on smuggled rice for so many years producing only 10% of its total rice requirements of 220,000 metric tons every year.In the proposal I submitted, I asked the President to allow the establishment of a Rice Trading Center supervised by the National Food Authority where rice supplies would be brought in legally by going through quarantine inspections, sanitary and pytho-sanitary requirements and payment of tariffs.I proposed that the volume of rice to be brought in should not exceed the total consumption requirements of the area which is about 200,000 metric tons every year.The strategy, supported by the local leaders of Zamboanga City, Basilan, Sulu and Tawitawi, is expected to curb rice smuggling and earn the government an estimated P1-B in tariffs every year.After my explanation, the President directed Sec. Dominguez to implement the revival of the Barter Trading Center in the southern islands.This would include the legal entry of rice under the Rice Trading Center concept which I proposed.