Roque gets flak over P500 Noche Buena

For suggesting that a Filipino family can put together a “decent” Noche Buena for just P500, Trade and Industry Secretary Cristina Roque is now facing sharp denunciation from all quarters.

Roque in an interview said that P500 was enough to cover the cost of a traditional family meal on Christmas eve.

The Noche Buena is traditionally celebrated by Filipino families on the night of 24 December, usually after the midnight Mass or Simbang Gabi or just before midnight. It is one of the most cherished and festive Filipino holiday traditions.

Minority lawmakers slammed the DTI chief for being out of touch amid the skyrocketing commodity prices.

Akbayan Rep. Perci Cendaña and Bicol Saro Rep. Terry Ridon on Friday said the DTI had been insisting on its cost estimate since 2022, despite knowing that it was a fantastic claim what with inflation.

Cendaña said P500 for Noche Buena would only be possible “if you travel back in time” when prices were drastically lower.

He said this was an “insulting gimmick,” as if the DTI thinks that Filipino families were “OMAD” or “one meal a day.”

Roque said P500 can buy a ham, spaghetti, and macaroni salad. She, however, qualified this was only applicable to a family of not more than four.

She told Daily Tribune that the price cap depended on how extravagantly a family prepared its Christmas feast.

In an exclusive interview on Friday, Roque said the P500 budget she was referring to was suitable for a family of four — mother, father and two children.

“I was asked if P500 was enough for Noche Buena, and that amount did not come from me, it came from the TV reporter. I said yes, it is enough because it really depends on how many members there are in a family. If it’s a mother, father, and two children, it’s enough. Even more so if there’s only one child. There are also families with just a mother and son, or a mother and daughter. That’s the typical family nowadays, isn’t it?” she said.

Freedom of choice

She stressed that a family has the freedom to choose how extravagant or simple their Noche Buena would be.

Roque said a manufacturer of Christmas ham has rolled back its price by P170, while a spaghetti noodle brand is priced at P30, and a spaghetti sauce brand has rolled back its price by as much as P40.

She also said that if a family makes macaroni salad, they can buy a known cheese brand for P56.50, while macaroni noodles are available at P40.95, along with a mayonnaise brand at P55.

“So, for macaroni salad for Noche Buena, the total is only P152.55. If a family chooses fruit salad, there is a brand of seasoned fruit cocktail priced at P61.76; all-purpose cream, P36.50, for a total cost of P98.26. Pinoy pandesal (10 pieces) is now at P27.75, so you can get change from the P500. You can still add luncheon meat worth P41, corned beef, or even some barbecue. Of course, skip the expensive ham if there are only four of you,” she advised.

Not enough

But ride-hailing app driver Gilbert Sarmiento, when sought his reaction to Roque’s estimates, said the secretary was wrong amid the prevailing high prices of meat, vegetables and other ingredients for making spaghetti.

“Of course, if you’re making spaghetti, you need ground meat, hot dogs, and tomato sauce. But hot dogs alone already cost over P250 per kilo. Then you still have the meat and all the other ingredients. Onions and garlic are expensive now. And of course, you won’t buy a no-brand hot dog because you only prepare dishes like this once in a while. It’s unlikely that P500 would be enough for spaghetti alone,” Sarmiento, who earns P800 a day, said.

The Department of Agriculture’s price monitoring showed imported red onions were at P240 per kilo, while garlic was at P140 per kilo as of 25 November, particularly at the Commonwealth Market.

Pork was priced at P330/kilo, beef at P420, and chicken at P280.

On the other hand, the staple Purefoods Fiesta Ham is priced at P630 per kilogram in supermarkets.

Earlier, the DTI assured that there would be no price increase on necessities and prime commodities until the end of the year.