SECTION 1. Any provision of existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding, upon certification by two-thirds vote of the National Economic Council that there is a shortage of the local supply of rice during the calendar year nineteen hundred sixty-four, the importation of rice is hereby authorized from any source, including the United States under the provisions of Public Law 480 of the United States, equivalent to the certified shortage but in no case to exceed three hundred thousand metric tons, two hundred thousand metric tons to be imported directly by the Government and the right to import not more than one hundred thousand metric tons shall be awarded through public bidding which shall be held within fifteen days after the approval of this Act by the Government to private enterprises willing and capable to undertake the said importation. In the granting of the award the determining consideration shall be the best terms as to prices, quality, schedule of delivery and manner of financing: Provided, however, That the Government may reject all bids and undertake the importation if the terms and conditions of the winning bidder cannot equal or better those that can be obtained if the importation were to be undertaken by the Government. All contracts to import rice under the authority herein granted shall be perfected, and all letters of credit or other media of payment therefor (unless imported under Public Law 480 of the United States or under a deferred payment plan) shall be issued or released, not later than September 30, 1964: Provided, however, That the letters of credit or such other media of payment as may be availed of shall be issued in favor of the Government of any government agency duly designated by the exporting country: Provided, further, That samples of the rice to be imported under such contracts shall be submitted upon signing of the contract to the contracting official representing the Philippine Government Which samples shall be used for the purposes of comparison and verification upon receipt of the shipment and prior to the acceptance of delivery of the same: And provided, finally, That no rice imported under such contracts shall be allowed to enter the country after October 30, 1964, unless the delay is caused by fortuitous event.
The rice importation authorized under this Act, whether by the Government or by private enterprises, shall be exempt from duties, taxes, and special charges, and shall be sold by the Rice and Corn Administration to the consumers at not less than one peso and ten centavos and not more than one peso and thirty centavos per ganta, through duly licensed retail store in the locality who had registered as Filipino rice retailers or dealers with the Rice and Corn Board on or before January 2, pursuant to general Circular No. 2, Series of 1961 of the said Board and in places where there is no distribution of rice by said retailers or where the distribution is unsatisfactory or does not result in the stabilization of the price of rice, then through the barrio councils: Provided, That before any imported rice sold or delivered to any distributor, whether retailer, or barrio council representative, he shall first bind himself, in writing, to sell the imported rice to consumers at the price fixed by the Rice and Corn Administration: Provided, further, That whatever price is fixed shall be uniform throughout the Philippines. No rice imported hereunder shall be distributed free to the consumers by any agency or instrumentality.