The appointment of Arthur Yap, a Filipino-Chinese, to the post of agriculture secretary doesn’t bode well with public interests.
Prior to his appointment, Congress may have first checked his background. Yet, it wasn’t done. It turned out later that Yap is the son-in-law of a big time rice trader in the country. Yap is married to the businessman’s second to the youngest daughter. From what reports said, Yap’s post is tainted with a conflict of interest, considering that his father-in-law is a rice trader.
Yap’s reaction? He would find it out, he said. How could he not be aware of his father-in-law’s activities? Had the media been sleeping, nobody would dare know that there’s indeed conflict of interest in the agriculture department. But if Yap is really a gentleman, he would have the delicadeza to bow out from the agriculture scene or tell his father-in-law to stop his rice business for good. Can he do that? I doubt it.
As head of the country agriculture department, the Filipino-Chinese community, especially those in the rice trading business, would be feasting on this opportunity. It will all the more encourage the rice cartel in the country to push through with their sinister plans to control the flow and prices of rice in the domestic market.
Whoever recommended Yap to the president is something that is a mystery to many. I, for one, could say that Yap’s background should be checked thoroughly. We never know, he might have an interest in some of the country’s rice cartels. And the artificial rice shortage right now is one of its sinister creations.
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