MANILA – The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) is pressing charges against onion importers and traders over anti-competitive practices.
In a news release Sunday, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the PCC, in a memorandum to President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. through Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin dated Aug. 13, said it is filing a case against 12 companies and individuals engaged in onion importation and trading for violating the Philippine Competition Act.
According to the PCC, evidence showed the respondents assigned among themselves sanitary and phytosanitary import clearances (SPSIC) issued by the Department of Agriculture-Bureau of Plant Industry (DA-BPI) and distributed the volume of onion allowed for importation.
“By agreeing to allocate SPSICs and divide among themselves the actual volume of imports, respondents effectively controlled more than 50 percent of the volume of onions imported into the Philippines during the relevant period. This is an anti-competitive agreement penalized under Section 14(b)(2) of the PCA,” the PCC said, as quoted by the PCO.
The antitrust body also said the respondents “colluded to lessen competition in the market.”
“Evidence showed that respondents, despite being competitors, shared, exchanged, and discussed sensitive business information such as price, suppliers, customers, volume, shipping, distribution, and storage,” it said.
With the illegal practices, the importers and traders avoided competing with each other and failed to independently decide on their policies and have substituted the risk of competition with cooperation, the PCC said.
It added that “such an agreement has the object of restriction or distortion of competition and has inherent restrictive effects upon competition,” an anti-competitive agreement penalized under Section 14 of the PCA.
The PCC’s Enforcement Office has recommended a total fine of PHP2.4 billion against the violators. (PNA)
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