Coco farmers divided over use of levy fund

LUCENA CITY—Peasant groups are divided on what to do with the recovered coconut levy fund.

Militant peasant groups Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and Kaisahang Pambansa ng mga Magsasaka sa Koprahan (Koprahan) on Sunday assailed Agriculture Secretary Proceso Alcala for his opposition to a cash distribution of the fund to the coconut farmers, while two other groups supported the proposal to use the fund to revive the dying coconut industry.

“We are not incidental beneficiaries of the coco levy fund. Coconut farmers were robbed in cash by the Marcos-Cojuangco clique, and it is only just and legitimate to return the cash to us,” said KMP deputy secretary general Willy Marbella in a phone interview Sunday.

“We are the legitimate owners of the billions of pesos the Aquino government now holds. The Aquino government doesn’t have the right to use our money,” he said.

But another group of coconut farmers welcomed Alcala’s declaration that he was not in favor of giving the money directly to the farmers but of putting it in a trust fund, the interest from which the rehabilitation and development of the ailing coconut industry would come.

Jansept Geronimo, spokesperson of Kilusan Para sa Tunay na Repormang Agraryo at Katarungan Panlipunan (Katarungan), agreed with Alcala.

“The coco levy should remain intact as a perpetual trust fund for the coconut industry until a law is passed and policies are set on how best (it could be used to) benefit the coconut farmers,” he said.

Maribel Luzara, president of Kilusang Magbubukid sa Bondoc Peninsula in Quezon, also supported Alcala.

“His declaration is a welcome announcement. He should convince President Aquino to speed up the creation of a perpetual trust fund,” Luzara said in a separate phone interview.

Alcala on Friday said he did not favor the “individual distribution” of money from the nearly P70-billion coco levy fund representing a 24-percent block of San Miguel Corp. (SMC) shares recovered by the government.

Instead, the assets should be used to rehabilitate and modernize the industry so the benefits would trickle down to the poorest coconut farmer, he said.

Coconut farmers from Quezon are believed to be the biggest contributors to the coco levy fund, a tax exacted from them between 1973 and 1982 during the regime of the dictator Ferdinand Marcos. It was to be used purportedly to develop the coconut industry. Instead it went to buy SMC shares that allowed Marcos crony Eduardo “Danding” Cojuangco to take control of the conglomerate.

“The coconut farmers who contacted us want their money back,” Marbella said.

He said KMP and Koprahan will hold a Coco Levy Funds Claimants’ Summit in Lucena City on Nov. 13 to kick off their nationwide campaign to get the coco levy fund back. Delfin T. Mallari Jr., Inquirer Southern Luzon