Pansamantalang uupo si Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. bilang administrator ng National Food Administration (NFA) sa pagpapatupad ng suspension order ng Office of the Ombudsman laban sa 139 opisyal at empleyado ng FFA.
Sinabi ni Department of Agriculture (DA) Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr, na ang suspension order ng Ombudsman laban sa 139 na opisyal at empleyado ng NFA kabilang ang administrator Roderico Bioco at assistant administrator for operations John Robert Hermano ay epektibo nitong Lunes, Marso 4.
“To avoid any delays in the services and projects of the agency, I will temporarily take over the leadership of the NFA. Apart from the suspended NFA personnel, who as we speak after being served their suspension letters, we expect everyone in the agency to do their regular job to ensure that our countrymen are provided the service they deserve,” sabi sa statement ni Laurel.
Ang pagsususpinde sa mga opisyal at empleyado ng NFA ay magbibigay daan para makakalap ang Ombudsman ng lahat ng mga dokumento at iba pang ebidensya na may kaugnayan sa umano’y “disadvantageous” na pagbebenta ng buffer stocks.
“Rice is the main food staple of tens of millions of Filipinos, particularly the poor. We cannot allow those who have been entrusted this noble task to bilk the NFA, enriching themselves at the expense of millions who struggle every day for a chance to feed their families,” ani ni Laurel.
“We beg your indulgence that we cannot discuss more than what we have said about this issue since the Ombudsman and DA investigations are still ongoing. Rest assured that once we have results, we will immediately inform the public,” dagdag pa ni Laurel.