MANILA, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) — Philippine President Ferdinand Romualdez Marcos on Wednesday ordered the lifting of the month-long ceiling on rice prices across the country amid two-digit decline of his approval and trust ratings.
Marcos, also the country’s agriculture secretary, imposed the cap on Sept. 5 to control the skyrocketing rice prices. “As of today, we are lifting the price caps on rice,” he told reporters.
The government cited the decreasing rice prices in domestic and global markets, increasing rice supply, and favorable external factors for lifting the rice price cap.
A nationwide survey conducted last month by Pulse Asia Research Inc. showed that Marcos’ approval rating declined by 15 percentage points to 65 percent from 80 percent in June, while his trust rating dropped by 14 percentage points to 71 percent from 85 percent.
The polling firm attributed the decline to Marcos’ failure to fulfill his campaign promise to lower the price to 20 pesos (0.35 U.S. dollars) per kg.
