WHEREAS, the National Food Authority (NFA) is mandated by law to procure palay and corn to stabilize the supply and price of the said commodities;

WHEREAS, the prevailing retail prices of commercial rice have continuously increased to the prejudice of low-income families;

WHEREAS, the NFA has embarked on a rice distribution program for low-income families, including low-salaried government employees;

WHEREAS, to facilitate and expand the said NFA rice distribution program, it is necessary to authorize all departments, bureaus, offices, agencies, and instrumentalities of the national government, including state colleges and universities and government-owned or controlled corporations, to advance the payment to the NFA for the NFA rice that may be purchased by their employees, chargeable against the Personnel Emergency Relief Allowance (PERA) of their employees and collectible by salary deduction from the said employees;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL V. RAMOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order:

SECTION 1. All departments, bureaus, offices, agencies, and instrumentalities of the national government, including state colleges and universities and government-owned or controlled corporations, are hereby authorized to advance the payment to the National Food Authority (NFA) for the NFA rice that may be purchased by their employees, chargeable against the Personnel Emergency Relief Allowance (PERA) of their employees and collectible by salary deduction from the said employees.

SEC. 2. To avail of the NFA offer to sell at P517.50 (P10.25/kilo x 50 kilos plus P5.00 delivery fee) per bag of NFA rice, interested government agencies shall submit a list of their employees who want to buy NFA rice, together with the payment, either in cash or by checks payable to NFA. Thereafter, the NFA will deliver the rice to the agency concerned, which will in turn distribute the bags of rice individually to their employees.

SEC. 3. This Order shall cover the period from October 1 to December 31, 1993, unless further extended.

SEC. 4. This Order shall take effect immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 22nd day of September, in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and ninety-three.

(Sgd.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines

By the President:
(Sgd.) TEOFISTO T. GUINGONA, JR.
Executive Secretary