City mulls reactivation of local price council

ILOILO City – Iloilo City Mayor Jose Espinosa III said he will confer with the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) regarding the reactivation of the Local Price Coordinating Council (LPCC).

“I will be getting advice from the DTI. We will take it under consideration,” said Espinosa in an interview.

At present, t he city government is also monitoring prices to know the impact of the inflation on businesses, he said. Western Visayas, including Iloilo City, has one of the highest inflation rates in the country, pegged at 7.4 percent last month.

In a previous interview, DTI provincial director Diosdado Cadena Jr. said they had been reminding local government units to activate their LPCC, as he cited that most of such councils in Iloilo are not functional.

The LPCC is a body that works on policy recommendations to address trade problems, particularly the price and supply of commodities in the market.

“Under the law, the LPCC shall not only monitor but could even act on violations of the law, especially on prices,” Cadena explained.

BACOLOD City – The Negros Occidental provincial government has renewed its partnership with Japanese firm Tenshinzan (Philippines) Inc. for the continued implementation of a dairy development project at the Negros First Ranch (NFR) in Barangay Sta. Rosa, Murcia town.

The extension of the collaboration for the second year was announced by the Provincial Veterinary Office ( PVO), after the Provincial Board approved a resolution on the signing of the memorandum

The LPCC is chaired by the local chief executive and the DTI as its vice-chair and secretariat.

I t s members are t he Department of Agriculture, Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Department of Health, Department of Science and Technology, National Economic and Development Authority, Philippine Statistics Authority, the private sector and a consumers’ group. ( PNA) of understanding ( MOU) between the province and Tenshinzan Inc.

The PVO, headed by provincial veterinarian Renante Decena, said in a statement that the provincial government continues to promote food security and local economic growth by improving its dairy industry.

“It is the province’s way of making milk available for the people,” it added.

The project also aims to encourage local government