Farmers want new firm to manage coco levy fund

MANILA, Philippines – The country’s coconut farmers are pushing for the establishment of a corporation that will manage the P75-billion coconut levy fund which the government eyes to release next month.

In a briefing yesterday, the Confederation of Coconut Farmer’s Organizations of the Philippines (Confed) sought the creation of a corporation, wherein coconut farmers will have direct representation.

“If there will be a trust fund, there should also be a management corporation, not just a committee. There should be stability, flexibility, transparency, and autonomy and has the capacity for good and effective governance,” Confed executive director Charlie Avila said during the Philippine Agricultural Journalists’ forum.

“There should be a trust fund in which the trust owner is the government and the beneficial owners are the farmers. The purpose will be for the benefit of the farmers and the development of the coconut industry,” he added.

Avila said President Duterte should decide on the composition of the corporation as long as farmers will have their representatives.

“They will be debating who will lead. The DOF said it should be them because it’s all about money. The DA said the same because it’s an agricultural product while the DTI said it’s about rural industrialization. The President should have the say,” he said.

“The farmers should have their representation in the corporation. The policies should be geared towards them,” Avila added.

Senator Francis Pangilinan, who filed the coco levy trust fund bill, also urged the Congress to start hearings on the bill.

“Perhaps President Duterte also needs to certify this bill as urgent so it will move in the Lower House,” he said.

In 2012, the Supreme Court ruled that the coco levy fund was a public fund and awarded it to the government solely for the development of the coconut industry.

The fund, which is with the National Treasury, cannot be spent without congressional approval or a new law.

The coco levy funds amounting to P75 billion represented taxes imposed on coconut farmers as mandated by Presidential Decree 755 in 1975.

The taxes were supposed to be used for the construction of projects designed for the benefits of coconut farmers but were instead used to buy a large percentage of the bank now known as United Coconut Planters Bank under Danding Cojuangco.

Confed  is already in the process of taking the necessary steps to withdraw its petition before the Supreme Court.

“There’s no reason why the court will not grant it. I am hopeful (with the SC) and there’s no reason why they should not act on it immediately,” Avila said.

In 2015, the SC stopped the implementation of executive orders 179 and 180 of former president Benigno Aquino III.

EO 179 called for the inventory, privatization and transfer coco levy assets in favor of government while EO 180 mandates the transfer of the funds to government for an “Integrated Coconut Industry Roadmap Program.”

Confed  represents more than 95 percent of the organized coconut farmers sector comprising the Philippine Association of Small Coconut Farmer’s Organizations,  Pambansang Koalisyon ng mga Samahang Magsasaka at Manggagawa sa Niyugan, and the Coconut Producer’s Federation.