Senator Ping Lacson has warned that smuggling, excessive onion imports, and a “sloppy” government response are pushing Filipino farmers to collapse, worsened by conflicting data from agencies.
At a Senate hearing, Lacson slammed the Department of Agriculture (DA) and Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) over wide discrepancies in production data, saying it blocks sound policy decisions.
“How can we arrive at effective decisions if your data is disjointed?” he said, stressing accurate data is crucial to planning.
Lacson noted imports in 2025 reached 94,000 metric tons—possibly up to 150,000 with smuggling—despite unclear supply gaps, while some farmers in Occidental Mindoro could not even sell up to 40% of their harvest.
He also hit the DA’s “very wide” communication gap with stakeholders and lack of timely action, warning consultations are useless if farmers are not heard.
The senator further flagged billions in lost revenues due to trade discrepancies with China, pointing to smuggling and underdeclaration as major causes of “leakages” in taxes.IMT
