DA chief refutes claim tying First Lady to rice cartel

AGRICULTURE Secretary Francisco P. Tiu Laurel, Jr. on Thursday dismissed claims of resigned Party-list Rep. Elizaldy S. Co that he shielded a rice cartel allegedly tied to First Lady Marie Louise Araneta-Marcos as “fabricated lies.”

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In a press briefing on Thursday, Mr. Tiu Laurel refuted allegations that he halted a House inquiry into rice prices after showing a confidential report implicating the first lady.

“This is not true. He is completely lying. The first lady has never meddled in any Department of Agriculture (DA) matters. Her name does not appear in any report we submitted to Congress,” Mr. Tiu Laurel said in a mix of English and Filipino.

This followed the release of a video statement, in which Mr. Co accused Ms. Marcos of being involved in a scheme that has kept prices of the staple grain artificially high despite reduced import duties.

He said Ms. Marcos was “in charge of the rice importers” that lawmakers began looking into due to elevated rice prices despite the rice import tariff being cut to 15% from 35%.

Mr. Co alleged that congressmen prematurely ended their investigation after the Agriculture secretary presented a document linking Ms. Marcos to the rice trade, prompting then-House Speaker Ferdinand Martin G. Romualdez and Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand Alexander “Sandro” A. Marcos III to call for its termination.

Mr, Tiu Laurel also denied the ex-lawmaker’s allegations that the first lady’s brother, Martin Araneta, is involved in onion smuggling and market manipulation that led to the 2022 price spike. “In my two years as Secretary of Agriculture, he has never made a single importation request,” he said.

The Agriculture secretary also addressed claims that the DA favored certain companies in giving import allocations, saying it was Mr. Co who repeatedly sought massive allocations for his nominated companies.

“It was Zaldy Co himself who asked me for 3,000 containers of imported fish to be allocated to his nominated companies. It’s clear that I did not grant his request because we already have a fair and transparent system for everyone to level the playing field,” he said.