Coco levy:
Still Danding's brew

Basahin ang artikulong ito sa Pilipino

Under the government of his henchman Estrada, Danding Cojuangco is recovering piece by piece billions of pesos worth of ill-gotten wealth. A "compromise deal" is now being cooked up so that the coco levy funds will finally fall into Cojuangco's hands.

The coco levy fund originated from taxes forcibly extracted by the Marcos dictatorship from coconut farmers from 1972 until 1983. Now estimated to be worth up to P100 billion, the fund is being administered by the United Coconut Planters Bank, which is owned by Danding.

In order to "serve the interests of the farmers", the deal calls for Cojuangco to "bequeathe" to the coconut farmers his 27% share (P40 billion) in San Miguel Corporation (SMC), in exchange for his recovery of his 20% share (P30 billion) in the company. Danding's shares in the SMC, totalling 47%, were sequestered by the government in 1986 based on evidence indicating that coco levy funds were used to buy the stocks.

Once the "deal" pushes through, Danding not only gets to pocket P30 billion; he secures his majority control over SMC. Meanwhile, P40 billion will allegedly be distributed to around 3.6 million coconut farmers. But the cunning landlord-comprador will definitely find ways to get his filthy hands on the P40 billion.

Erap and Danding's pronouncement that the "compromise deal" is "for the farmers" is merely intended to conceal the reality of the notorious crony's recovery of his ill-gotten wealth. In fact, the coconut farmers had no say in drawing up the terms of the deal now being railroaded by Malaca�ang and Danding.

Seen from any angle, it is the small coconut farmers who have the right to the coco levy funds. To deny them this right is to spark the fire of widespread anger and resistance.

00 July 1999
English Edition

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