Section 1. For
the purpose of developing and improving the rice and corn industries in
all their phases, of stabilizing the prices of rice and corn, and of
promoting the social and economic conditions of the people who are
engaged in the production of these staple foods, as corporation is
hereby created which shall be known as the National Rice and Corn
Corporation and shall be referred to herein as Corporation. All assets
and liabilities of the defunct NARIC which were turned over to the
PRISCO by virtue of Executive Order No. 350 are hereby transferred to
this new Corporation. The National Rice and Corn Corporation shall be
organized within one month after the date of the approval of this Act
and shall exist for a term of thirty years from the said date. The
Corporation shall have its main office in the City of Manila.
Sec. 2. (a) The Corporation shall carry out its
development work not by any form of regimentation, but thru —
1. Education, inducements and actual practical
demonstrations;
2. Promotion of initiative of, and cooperation among,
the people;
3. Facilities and guidance; and
4. The help of existing Government agencies and
private institutions.
(b) The Corporation shall carry out its stabilization
work thru —
1. The maintenance of a stable price consistent with
the average cost of production, with the purchasing power of the
people, and with the national economic policy of the Government;
2. The prevention of speculation in trading and of
the exploitation of the consumers;
3. The financing of producers of the raw products as
well as of other activities of the industries needing such assistance;
4. The study, promotion and execution of such
measures as will improve the quality and unit yield as well as improve
and reduce the cost of production, handling, storage, conservation,
processing, transportation and general trading of rice, corn, and their
by-products;
5. The study, promotion, and establishment of such
industries as will make the most use of the by-products of the industry
and produce commodities of economic importance to the people;
6. The study, promotion and execution of such
measures as will improve the nutritive value and assimilability of rice
and corn as well as of their by-products;
7. The study, promotion and execution of such
measures as will solve the problems that may arise from overproduction
of rice and corn.
(c) The Corporation shall carry out its work of
promoting the economic and social conditions of the people engaged in
the production of rice and corn thru —
1. General agricultural development,
industrialization of agricultural products and promotion of home
industries in the rice and corn producing regions.
2. Promotion of cooperative associations among them.
Sec. 3. For carrying out the foregoing objectives,
the Corporation shall have authority —
(a) To act as the agent or instrumentality of the
Government in any of its governmental, social or civic functions in
such a manner and under such conditions as may be prescribed by law or
by executive order or proclamation;
(b) To buy, sell, import, export, deal in, barter,
exchange and handle in every other manner, rice and corn, as well as
the by-products of said cereals;
(c) To own, lease, operate or otherwise hold, subject
to existing laws, trucks, railway lines and any other means of
transportation, elevators, mills, factories, irrigation systems, power
plants, machinery and equipment of all kinds, and warehouses and
structures of every nature and kind for the protection, storage,
handling, processing, utilization, and sale of rice and corn and other
agricultural products, and of other commodities necessary for
development work;
(d) To give loans on reasonable terms, and finance
activities in the rice and corn industries;
(e) To borrow, or raise or secure money and to
mortgage or otherwise encumber any property belonging to the
Corporation or otherwise give security therefor;
(f) To enter into, make, perform and carry out
contracts of every class and description necessary or incidental to the
realization of its purpose with any person, firm, or corporation,
private or public, and with any foreign government;
(g) To have one or more offices outside of the
Philippines, and to conduct its business and exercise its powers in any
part of the Philippines or in any foreign country, State or territory;
(h) To undertake research on industrialization,
conservation and better utilization of agricultural products;
(i) To study and promote home industries among the
families engaged in the production of rice and corn;
(j) To exercise, in the name of the Republic of the
Philippines, the right of eminent domain, and in the purchase of any
real estate or the acquisition of real estate by condemnation
proceedings, the title to such real estate shall be taken in the name
of the Republic of the Philippines, and thereupon all such real estate
shall be entrusted to the Corporation as the agent of the Republic of
the Philippines to accomplish the purposes of this Act: Provided, That
such exercise of the right of public domain shall be resorted to only
after the Corporation has completely failed to purchase such real
estate at a price deemed reasonable by the Board of
Directors;
(k) To procure and sell or donate fertilizers and
lime, to be fairly and equitably distributed through the agency of
provincial demonstration agents, Department of Agriculture,
agricultural college, or otherwise as the Board of Directors may
direct, for experimentation, education, and introduction of the use of
such fertilizers and lime in cooperation with practical farmers so as
to obtain information as to the value, effect, and best methods of
their use;
(l) To establish its own demonstration farms and to
arrange with farmers and farm organizations for the large-scale
practical use of fertilizers and lime under conditions permitting an
accurate measure of the economic return they produce, with the
provision that said farmers and farm organizations shall keep records
of the farm methods and performance, which records shall be open to the
public;
(m) To cooperate with National, provincial and school
experimental stations or demonstration farms, with farmers, landowners,
tenants and associations of landowners, tenants, and farmers for the
use of fertilizers and lime, or fertilizing and liming practices, and
for promoting the prevention of soil erosion by the use of fertilizers
or otherwise;
(n) To request the assistance and advise of any
officer, agent or employee of any Executive Department or of any
independent office of the Republic of the Philippines, to enable the
Corporation to better carry out its powers successfully, and as far as
possible, utilize the services of such officers, agents, and employees,
and the President of the Philippines shall, if in his opinion, the
public interest, service or economy so require, direct that such
assistance, advice and service to be rendered to the Corporation, and
any individual that may be directed by the President to render such
assistance, advice and service shall, thereafter be subject to the
orders, rules and regulations of the Corporation; Provided, That any
invention or discovery made by virtue of and incidental to such service
by an employee of the Government of the Philippines serving under this
section, or by any employee of the Corporation, together with any
patents which may be granted thereon, shall be the sole and exclusive
property of the Corporation, which is hereby authorized to grant such
licenses thereunder as shall be authorized by the Board of Directors:
Provided, further, That the Corporation may pay to such inventor such
sum from the income from sale of licenses as it may deem
proper;
(o) To adopt and undertake such measures as will
improve the economic and social conditions of the people engaged in the
production of rice and corn;
(p) Generally, to do all such other things and to
transact all such business as may be directly or indirectly incidental
or conducive to the attainment of the purposes of the corporation; and
(q) To do, in carrying on its business, any and all
acts and things and to exercise any and all powers which a natural
person should do and exercise and which now or hereafter may be
authorized by law.
Sec. 4. The National Rice and Corn Corporation
shall be subject to the provisions of the Corporation Law in so far as
they are compatible with the provisions of this Act, and it shall enjoy
the general powers mentioned in said Corporation Law in addition to
those herein specified.
Sec. 5. In order to enable the Corporation to
exercise the powers and duties vested in it by this Act —
(a) The Corporation is hereby exempted from the
payment of import duty of rice and corn, and on such supplies,
machinery and equipment such as fertilizers and lime as may be
necessary for demonstration farming.
(b) The Corporation is hereby exempted from the
payment of sales and milling taxes imposed or to be imposed by the
National, or by any provincial or municipal governments, and the
President of the Philippines is hereby authorized to further exempt the
Corporation from the payment of other taxes whenever in his opinion
such exemption is for public interest.
(c) The President of the Philippines is hereby
authorized to transfer and assign to the Corporation, the parcels of
land belonging to the Government and situated in the City of Manila
bounded on three sides by Azcarraga Street, Quezon Boulevard and
Evangelista Street, more specifically described as Lots Nos. 1, 2, 3,
4, 5, & 6, Block 2181, containing 9,398 square meters and such
other real or personal property of the Republic of the Philippines as
he may from time to time deem necessary and proper for the purposes of
the Corporation.
(d) The Corporation is hereby authorized to inspect
and take records of palay, rice and corn stocks stored by any person,
partnership or corporation, and to enter the premises where these
commodities may be found, for such inspection and records.
Sec. 6. (a) In the appointment of officials and
selection of employees for the said Corporation, and in the promotion
of any employees or officials, no political test or qualifications
shall be permitted or given consideration, but all such appointments
and promotions shall be given and made on the basis of merit and
efficiency. Any member of the Board of Directors who is found by the
President of the Philippines to be guilty of a violation of this
section shall be removed from office by the President of the
Philippines, and any appointee of said Board who is found by the Board
to be guilty of a violation of this section shall be removed from
office by said Board.
(b) The Board of Directors shall establish and
prescribe its own rules, regulations, standards, and records for the
employment, promotion, demotion, removal, transfers, welfare,
compensation and appraisal of performance of employees and officers of
the Corporation, and provide a system of organization to fix
responsibility and promote efficiency.
Sec. 7. (a) The capital stock of the Corporation
shall be subscribed by the Government of the Republic of the
Philippines excepting such number of stocks as may necessarily be sold
to the members of the Board of Directors. Fifty per cent of the value
of stocks subscribed shall be paid immediately; 10 per cent on or
before July, 1951; 10 per cent on or before July 1, 1952; and 10 per
cent on or before July 1, 1953. Payment of the balance shall be subject
to call by the President of the Philippines upon recommendation of the
Board of Directors. Stocks sold to any member of the Board may be
purchased by the Government of the Republic of the Philippines at par
value when he ceases to be a member of said Board.
(c) The voting power of all such stocks owned by the
Government of the Republic of the Philippines shall be vested in the
President of the Philippines or in such person or persons as he may
designate.
Sec. 8. (a) The Corporation shall, at all times,
maintain complete and accurate books of accounts, which shall be
segregated under three main accounts namely:
Account No. 1 — Pertaining to the Corporation's activities in the
stabilization of prices.
Account No. 2 — Pertaining to the Corporation's activities in
developing and improving production.
Account No. 3 — Pertaining to the Corporation's activities in promoting
the economic and social conditions of the people engaged in the
production of rice and corn.
(b) The Board of Directors shall submit its annual
report and balance sheets to the President of the Philippines and the
Congress of the Philippines as provided for in section five hundred and
seventy-four to five hundred and seventy-seven of the Administrative
Code.
(c) All purchases and contracts for supplies or
services, except for personal services, made by the Corporation, shall
be made after advertising in such a manner and at such times
sufficiently in advance of opening of bids as the Board shall determine
to be adequate to insure notice and opportunity for competition:
Provided, That advertisement shall not be required when, (1) an
emergency requires immediate delivery of the supplies or performance of
the service; or (2) repair parts, accessories, supplemental equipment,
or services are required for supplies or services previously furnished
or contracted for; or (3) the aggregate amount involved in any purchase
of supplies or procurement of services does not exceed P1,000 in which
case such purchases of supplies or procurement of services may be made
in the open market in the manner common among businessmen: Provided,
further, That in comparing bids and in making awards the Board may
consider such factors as relative quality and adaptability of supplies
or services, the bidder's financial responsibility, skill, experience,
record of integrity in dealing, ability to furnish repairs and
maintenance services, the time of delivery or performance offered, and
whether the bidder has complied with the specifications: Provided,
further, That in case supplies may be procured from a government,
domestic or foreign, and it can be established to the satisfaction of
the Board that the Government price is the lowest possible, considering
quality and period of delivery, the Board may allow purchases from the
Government without public bidding.
(d) The Auditor General shall audit the transactions
of the Corporation at such times as he shall determine, but not less
frequently than once each governmental fiscal year, with personnel of
his selection. In such connection, he and his representative shall have
free and open access to all papers, books, records, files, accounts,
plants, warehouses, offices, and all other things, property, and places
belonging to or under the control of or used or employed by the
Corporation, and shall be afforded full facilities for counting all
cash and verifying transactions with, and balances in, depositories. He
shall make report of each such audit in quadruplicate, one copy for the
President of the Philippines, one for the Chairman of the Board, one
for public inspection at the principal office of the Corporation, and
the other to be retained by him for the uses of the Congress: Provided,
That such report shall not be made until the Corporation shall have had
reasonable opportunity to examine the exceptions and criticisms of the
Auditor General, to point out errors therein, explain or answer the
same, and to file a statement which shall be submitted by the Auditor
General with his report. The expenses for each such audit shall be paid
from any appropriation or appropriations for the General Auditing
Office, and such part of such expenses as may be allocated to the
Corporation shall be reimbursed promptly by the Corporation as billed
by the Auditor General. The Auditor General shall make special reports
to the President of the Philippines and to Congress of any transaction
or condition found by him to be in conflict with the powers or duties
entrusted to the Corporation by law.
Sec. 9. (a) The management of the National Rice
and Corn Corporation shall be vested in a Board of Directors consisting
of five members appointed by the President of the Philippines, with the
consent of the Commission on Appointments. The President of the
Philippines shall appoint the Chairman of the Board from among its
members. The Board shall appoint a General Manager and an Assistant
General Manager who need not be members of the Board.
(b) Of the five directors first appointed as above
prescribed, the President of the Philippines shall designate one to
serve for one year, one for two years, one for three years, one for
four years, and the chairman for five years; and thereafter, each
director appointed shall serve for five years. Whenever a vacancy shall
occur among the directors, the person appointed to fill it shall hold
office for the unexpired term of the member whose place he is selected
to fill.
(c) Three members of the Board of Directors shall
constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
(d) All members of the Board shall be persons who
profess a belief in the feasibility and wisdom of this Act.
Section 10. (a) The present National Rice and Corn
Corporation as merged with the PRISCO by Executive Order No. 350 is
dissolved. Its properties, assets, rights, choses in action,
obligations, liabilities and contracts are transferred to, and are
vested in, and assumed by, the public corporation herein created. The
business and affairs of the aforecited corporation are liquidated as of
the effective date of this Act, and are automatically assumed and
continued by the Corporation herein created.
(b) The net book value of the properties and assets
of the present National Rice and Corn Corporation as merged with the
PRISCO by Executive Order No. 350 on the effective date of approval of
this Act, shall be received by the Corporation herein created in
payment for an equal value of shares of the capital stock of the
Corporation herein created.
(c) All references made to the National Rice and Corn
Corporation referred to above in any Act or in any Executive Order or
Proclamation of the President of the Philippines which is still in
force shall be deemed to be a reference to the National Rice and Corn
Corporation created in this Act.
Section 11. To carry out the purposes of this Act,
there is hereby appropriated out of the funds of the National Treasury
not otherwise appropriated, to be paid and transferred to the
Corporation for the stocks subscribed by the Government, as follows:
Ten million pesos upon approval of this Act, five million of which
shall be taken from the authorized capital appropriation of the PRISCO
as share of the RICO department, PRISCO, activities which will be
assumed and continued by this new Corporation; five million pesos less
the net book value of the properties and assets of the former National
Rice and Corn Corporation, on or before July 1, 1952; and the balance,
or five million pesos, on or before July 1, 1953. The total sum to be
paid and transferred to the Corporation under the provisions of this
Act shall not exceed twenty million pesos. All profits derived from the
operation of the Corporation herein created shall accrue to and form
part of the same and shall be available for expenditure and/or
investment for the same purposes herein provided.
Section 12. This Act shall take effect one month
after its approval.
Approved: June 16, 1951
|