Former Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) board member Aurelio Gerardo “Bodie” Valderrama Jr. called accusations hurled by the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee in its recommendation for charges to be filed against him and three others “baseless and false”.
Valderrama, a Negrense, is the president of the VICMICO Planters Association Inc. and a director of the Confederation of Sugar Producers.
He was appointed planters representative to the SRA Board by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on August 2 and was replaced by Pablo Luis Azcona on August 20.
The Blue Ribbon Committee recommended the filing of charges against Agriculture Undersecretary Leocadio Sebastian, former SRA Administrator Hermenegildo Serafica, and SRA board members Roland Beltran and Valderrama for the issuance of Sugar Order No. 4 (SO4) granting the importation of 300,000 MT of sugar.
The committee urged the Ombudsman to file graft charges against the four for alleged corrupt practices, violation of Republic Act 10845 or the anti-agricultural smuggling law, and usurpation of authority.
The president recalled SO4 because Malacañang said it was signed by Sebastian without his authority. Marcos chairs the SRA board as concurrent agriculture secretary.
Valderrama said he was the first to sign the sugar order because he was told that it was urgently needed by the Palace. He did not know that Sebastian signed SO4 in behalf of the president, since it was sent back to the board after he signed it, Valderrama said.
Valderrama said while he disagrees with the recommendation of the Blue Ribbon Committee, “the best thing for us to do at this moment is to wait for the concerned agencies’ official investigation”.
“While the outcome of the report is against our interest, I truly believe that we were already pre-judged during the hearing. The graft and corruption charges, smuggling charges, etc. are baseless and false accusations,” he said.
“Rest assured that I will face the cases that they are going to file against me head on, in the proper time and at the proper forum. This could actually be a blessing in disguise as the cases will be pending before an impartial body,” he said.
ZOOM MEETING
Executive Secretary Vic Rodriguez is saying that there was no urgency for the importation of sugar but in a Zoom meeting on August 4 with the president the matter was tackled, Valderrama said.
Rodriquez was in that Zoom meeting with the president, he said.
At that meeting the president said “maybe we can import around 600,000 (MT of sugar), maybe he got that figure out of his head, I cannot speculate where he got that 600,000 but automatically Hermie Serafica said Mr. President that might be too much because the milling season is about to open…and the president out rightly said okay submit to me an importation plan as soon as possible,” Valderrama said.
“We had a Zoom meeting and I can prove that,” Valderrama said.
SCAPEGOATS
“We are being made scapegoats now, it’s not fair – the stress that it’s causing me, my wife and my family,” he said.
“Somebody is lying”, Valderrama said.
Valderrama said in less than four days after he sat down at that meeting this is what has happened to him.
Valderrama also asked where the accusation linking him to smuggling came from.
“How am I able to defend myself when I was not even given five minutes to talk” at the Senate Blue Ribbon committee hearing? he asked.
“They’re accusing me now of graft and corruption, of smuggling. Where did they get that? Just because they are senators they can do this to me,” he said.
HONTIVEROS DISSENTS
The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee report was signed by 14 senators with opposition Sen. Risa Hontiveros as the sole dissenter.
“I concur with the findings of the committee that there ‘may have been’ a sugar shortage. In fact, there was and there is a shortage. Facts don’t lie. The numbers don’t lie. I hope this puts to rest all speculation that the shortage is artificial, that there are bodegas filled with sugar. These optics need to be seen against the data — how much sugar do we as a country actually consume, how much are we producing locally,” she said.
Hontiveros said she believes Sebastian “when he says he was of the good faith belief that the importation not only was necessary, it had the support of the Chief Executive”.
If the President wanted to recall SO4, it is perfectly within his province to do so, she said, “but to throw everything but the kitchen sink on Usec. Sebastian discourages government officials from acting with urgency on matters that affect consumers, like tight supply, high prices and inflations”.
In fact, DA insiders say that department officials are now gun-shy about signing any importation documents, further exacerbating the food shortage, she added.
“What is the real score? Why did the executive secretary need to be subpoenaed and why did he not disclose the August 4 meeting with the President in the first instance?” Hontiveros asked.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The Senate Blue Ribbon Committee in its report also recommended the following:
*Amendment of relevant legislation such as Executive Order 18, Republic Act 10659 and related laws to inject transparency and accountability in the issuance of import permits;
*Amendment of EO 18 to provide for the expansion of SRA Board to eight members with the Agriculture Secretary as ex officio chairman and addition of sectors represented — consumers (both industrial and household), sugar industry workers, sugar transportation workers and other stakeholders;
*Amendment of EO 18 to prohibit delegation of authority of the SRA Board to reclassify sugar;
*Review and rationalization of the sugar importation policy of the government;
*Provide full funding granted by the Sugar Industry Development Act; and
Recommend that the SRA prepare a sugar import plan with appropriate safeguards for review of higher authorities.