Can the President go against Cojuangco’s interests?

This is in reaction to Malacañang’s response on the issue of what to do with the recovered coco levy funds and assets. Farmer groups had earlier suggested that the CIIF-SMC cash dividends currently amounting to almost P10 billion be freed up to bolster programs primarily designed to help the coconut farmers and the coconut industry.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad and Philippine Coconut Authority administrator Euclides Forbes both opined that Malacañang may not do anything with the funds until such time that the Supreme Court settles the issue with finality. Correct! But such flimsy pronouncements do not answer the basic question on what to do with the funds once the Supreme Court decision on the matter becomes final-—an assurance the coconut farmers seriously need from President Aquino, who has been mum on the issue ever since his election bid in 2010.

The SMC block of shares referred to was ruled, earlier this year, by the Supreme Court to be public and owned by the government in trust for all coconut farmers. The same decision even pointed out that such funds and assets may be used only for the benefit of all coconut farmers and for the development of the coconut industry.

Cocofed filed a motion for reconsideration to claim private ownership of such shares as it normally did in the past. It has been doing this since 1996 to open up talks with government for an out-of-court settlement that would give Cocofed a role in the handling of the public funds. But it is all a matter of time. This particular case garnered the votes of 11 justices without any dissenting opinion, unlike the other SMC block which was granted to Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco Jr. for the government’s failure to prove that he was indeed a crony of former President Ferdinand Marcos—which is the “biggest joke” Filipinos have heard this century.

Surprisingly Abad and Forbes even talked about programs being enhanced without consideration of the coco levies, in effect, ignoring the real issue. It appears that even with a defined judgment by the Courts, the Aquino administration cannot get to position itself in opposition to Danding Cojuangco. This also explains the current trend of appointments made by the President of people close to Cojuangco to coco levy-funded companies. Even the Office of the Solicitor General, the office tasked to handle coco levy cases for the government, has been placed under a former SMC lawyer.

—JOEY T. FAUSTINO,

executive director,

Coconut Industry Reform (COIR) Movement Inc.,

63 Masikap Ext., Central,

Diliman, Quezon City