Coconut farmers urged Tuesday the establishment of a government corporation instead of a mere committee that will handle the coconut levy fund.
“The public trust fund of the magnitude of the coco levy fund will not need a mere committee but a full fledge GOCC (government-owned and controlled corporation)
that has the requisite characteristic of stability, flexibility, autonomy, transparency, and accountability and therefore the capacity for good and effective governance,” said Confederation of Coconut Farmer’s Organizations of the Philippines executive director Charlie Avila.
The P75-billion coco levy funds were supposed to fund construction of projects for coconut farmers, but they were used instead to finance the purchase of United Coconut Planters Bank and a majority stake in San Miguel Corp.
The Supreme Court in 2012 ruled that the coco levy fund was public fund and awarded it to the government solely for the development of the coconut industry.
The fund is currently with the national treasury and cannot be spent without congressional approval or a new law.
The government is currently is speeding up the release of the coco levy fund.
Earlier, Senator Francis Pangilinan, who is also the chairman of the Senate committee on agriculture, filed a bill seeking to allocate the proceeds of the fund for the development of the coconut industry.
The bill also aims to establish a perpetual trust fund that will only use the interest income earned.