Kiko declines Blue Ribbon post; Pia weighing offer
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Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan has declined the chairmanship of the Blue Ribbon Committee, saying he was focused on solving the deep-rooted problems in the agriculture sector, including food smuggling and the lack of support for farmers.
In a radio interview Thursday, Pangilinan said he turned down the post to continue his work as chair of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Food, and Agrarian Reform.
Pangilinan cited the persistent corruption and inefficiency in agriculture that have hurt small producers and consumers. He noted that more than half of agricultural smuggling cases from 2021 to 2025 were dismissed due to incomplete documentation by the Bureau of Customs.
He criticized the failure to implement the Anti-Agricultural Economic Sabotage Law, which remains toothless despite having been passed more than a decade ago.
“This Anti-Economic Sabotage Law is 10 years old but up to now no smuggler has been jailed,” he said in Filipino.
The senator also mentioned names linked to smuggling, including former DPWH undersecretary Roberto Bernardo, engineers Brice Hernandez and Henry Alcantara, and the Discaya group. He vowed to pursue investigations to hold those responsible accountable.
