The National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry of the Philippines (NACUSIP-TUCP) on Friday, March 27, again strongly denounced the Sugar Regulatory Administration’s (SRA) refusal to release the minutes of the board meeting that approved Sugar Order No. 8, Series of 2024-2025.
The order authorized the importation of 424,000 metric tons of refined sugar—a staggering 274,000 MT surplus over the 150,000 MT requested by industry stakeholders, the NACUSIP-TUCP press statement said.
This over-importation is widely blamed for the destructive drop in millgate prices, plunging sugar farmers and workers into widespread poverty, debt and injustice, it said.
In a letter to NACUSIP-TUCP dated March 20, sent nearly two months after the initial request, SRA Administrator Pablo Luis Azcona denied the release of the minutes.
The SRA cited GCG Memorandum Circular No. 2012-07, claiming the discussions are “Confidential Information” and “Non-Public Information” involving internal deliberations.
NACUSIP-TUCP National President Roland C. de la Cruz called SRA’s legal justification a “grave misinterpretation” of the rules.
“Such move is an affront to the transparency and good governance pillars of President Marcos Jr.’s Bagong Pilipinas”, he said.
“The SRA’s secrecy is a betrayal of the farmers and workers. We demand to know what transpired in that boardroom and who specifically authorized an oversupply that has crippled our livelihoods. The minutes of an official meeting mandating an official Sugar Order are public documents, not ‘non-public’ secrets,” De la Cruz said.
“If there is nothing to hide, if there is nothing anomalous, why hide under the skirt of GCG Memorandum Circular No. 2012-07 just to keep the SO8 minutes away from public scrutiny? I urge and call on all legislators of the Negros Island Region to join us in our demand for transparency,” De la Cruz added.
NACUSIP-TUCP demands the immediate release of the meeting minutes, the resignation of the SRA officials responsible for this decision, and full accountability for the billions of pesos lost by the local sugar industry, he said.*
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