P76-B coco levy fund becomes campaign pitch for Quezon gov

by Dong de los Reyes April 19, 2022  Quezon re-electionist governor Danilo Suarez LUCENA CITY - At the full height of the barnstorming seaso...

by Dong de los Reyes
April 19, 2022

 Quezon re-electionist governor Danilo Suarez

LUCENA CITY - At the full height of the barnstorming season preceding the May 9 local and national elections, the pitch taken by re-electionist Quezon chief executive for the return of the coconut levy monies-- that have grown fat over decades-- can be taken with a grain of salt.

A 2014 Supreme Court ruling mandates that at least P71 billion worth of coconut levy monies that had been used to buy San Miguel Corporation shares during the Martial Law regime belong to the government and should be used only for the coconut farmers and for the development of the coconut industry.



The sequestered funds have since been turned over to the Bureau of Treasury-- and no coco farmer coops or federations have come forward to stake their claims on the monies.

And no political bigwig in coconut growing regions has nudged their coco constituencies to take legal action or a measure of pressure for the release of the monies in their favor.



Instead, lawmakers took action crafting a measure that was enacted in February 2021 as R.A. No. 11524 or the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act that sets up a trust fund from the PCGG-seized coco levy assets.

And thus, farmers groups need to muster formal legal action to partake of their shares in the P76-B fund.



Rather than bring the issue to the grassroots, Quezon re-electionist governor Danilo Suarez is pinning his hopes on presidential wannabe Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to lend a hand in the bid to get back their share of the coco levy fund.

In the 2016 vice-presidential race, the Quezon electorate gave the winning vote to current Marcos rival and front-running presidential aspirant Leonor G. Robredo.

Suarez promised that it won't happen this time as he vowed to deliver 300,000 to 400,000 votes for Marcos in the May 9 polls.

Quezon province, the 13th vote-richest province in the Philippines has over one million registered voters.

“I assure you this will be an unprecedented election results sa darating na eleksyon,” Suarez said.