Pangilinan: Pass ‘long-overdue’ coco levy fund bill in 18th Congress

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Francis “Kiko” Pangilinan on Tuesday urged his fellow lawmakers to finally pass the coconut levy fund bill in the 18th Congress, which he said has been “long overdue.”

“Karamihan sa mga pinatawan ng coco levy noon kung hindi uugod-ugod na ay sumakabilambuhay na at hindi man lang nasilayan ang hustisiya na kanilang ipinaglalaban na deka-dekada na ang ikinatagal,” Pangilinan said in a statement.

Pangilinan refiled Senate Bill 31 or “The Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Act” on July 1, which seeks to establish a trust fund for coconut farmers.

READ: Pangilinan refiles coconut levy fund bill

During the 17th Congress, President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed an earlier version of the bill, saying it lacked “vital safeguards” to avoid past mistakes and “may be violative of the Constitution.”

READ: Duterte explains veto: Coco levy bill lacks ‘vital safeguards’

“The help expected from the government has been long overdue but we can still make right the wrong in our history. The coconut levy bill nut is a giant nut we should be able to crack for our farmers,” Pangilinan said.

The levy was imposed on coconut farmers in 1973, during the administration of late President Ferdinand Marcos.

The tax imposed aimed to benefit contributors. However, it was found that only the cronies of Marcos benefitted from the funds.

If passed, Pangilinan said that it would benefit 3.5 million coconut farmers from the estimated P100 billion fund in cash and assets.  /muf