THE LAST stretch of the 1,750-kilometer march of coconut farmers from Davao ended last Wednesday, November 26, with President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III agreeing to certify the coconut levy bill as urgent.
The march began at around 9:00 AM at the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) in Quezon City. The 71 farmers of KILUS Magniniyog (KM71), accompanied by supporters from the civil sector, went down Quezon Avenue and España until they reached Mendiola. Aquino announced his intent for dialogue with them on November 24, before the group had visited the House of Representatives.
KM71 is composed of various farmers, including teenagers, senior citizens and women, who left their homes on September 21 for Malacañang. Their 71-day march is symbolic of their push for the accessibility of the P71-billion coconut levy fund—which was formed during the Marcos regime from taxes collected from coconut farmers—and the establishment of a trust fund which can protect the money from misuse.
“I would like to be an optimist,” said former Senator Bobby Tañada before the dialogue. He had joined the farmers in Davao on the first leg of their march before returning to Manila. “I hope we will hear some good news, because this has been a long, long wait, and it’s getting to be really frustrating, but we have not lost hope.”
Meeting in Malacañang
The dialogue began at about 1:00 PM inside the Palace. KM71 sent nine leaders inside, one for each of the federations that comprised the organization, with one of the leaders speaking on behalf of the group. The federations under KM are BASULTA, PKMP, PAKISAMA, PKMM, KATARUNGAN, KAMMPILL, NIUGAN, LAKAMBINI and Young Farmers. There were also 15 farmers, five of whom would share their story to the president.
They were also accompanied by five personalities, including Tañada, former Quezon Congressman Oscar Santos, National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) for Basic Sectors Vice Chair Marlon Manuel and Congressional Committee on Agrarian Reform Chair Teddy Baguilat. Ateneo de Manila University President Jose Ramon Villarin, SJ, was also invited but was not available.
Joey Faustino, executive director of the Coconut Industry Reform (COIR) Movement, Inc., said that Aquino was accompanied by some department secretaries of the executive branch among other government officials.
Faustino added that after the sharing from the farmers, KM71 presented its statement to the president. While only six KM71 representatives would speak, all those present participated in the decision-making process for their response to the government.
President’s statement
In Aquino’s opening remarks, he said in Filipino: “First: While it would be better to have a law, which we don’t have yet, we are studying your request for me to issue an executive order (EO).” He went on to agree that the coco levy fund should be separate from the budget allotment for PCA. He added, “I also agree that only interest income from the coco levy fund should be used, so that the next generations of farmers can also benefit from it.”
By 2:30 PM, the president agreed to certify as urgent a coco levy bill establishing a trust fund protecting the P71 billion. The declaration of a bill as urgent means that it will skip its first and second reading, speeding the process for its approval to a law.
Faustino said that KM71 filed an initiative bill in Congress and were told that its first hearing will be held on December 16. Aquino did not mention whether the present bills or a new one would be tagged urgent, according to a report from Rappler.
Aquino also agreed to issue an EO providing a yearly P3 B for the farmers while the bill was not yet approved, though this required an entry of judgment from the Supreme Court (SC).
Ace Dela Cruz, chairperson of the Ateneans for Agrarian Reform Movement (Afarm), expressed cautiousness at the idea of creating an entirely new bill. “If he does… there is a possibility that some provisions on the bills that KM71 passed, which provides a road map for the usage of the coco levy funds, will not coincide with the bill that PNoy will certify as urgent,” he said.
But Dela Cruz and Faustino believe that securing the entry of judgment will not be hard. “[The] number of chief justices most likely going to be in support… of the trust fund… are in our favor,” Dela Cruz said in a mix of English and Filipino, estimating that more than half of the SC justices side with them. “And since there’s a pronouncement from [Aquino], I think that’s also a bonus for us.”
Dela Cruz added that the EO was only for a short-term benefit. “There’s a chance that the next president will retain it, but there’s also a possibility that the next president will scrap that EO,” he explained. “However, the bill is going to be for the long-term benefit of farmers precisely because it’s going to be institutionalized.”
Faustino added that they can use Aquino’s stand to prod the SC and the House if necessary. A number of senators and congressmen are supportive of the movement, including Bam Aquino, Alan Peter Cayetano, Cynthia Villar, Leni Robredo, Mel Sarmiento and Walden Bello, among others.
Programs and productivity
However, Faustino notes that some details still need to be ironed out, such as “how are the funds going to be handled [and] who will govern such funds.” Faustino’s movement, COIR, trained the farmers in preparation for the dialogue and supplied them with statistics and information.
“‘Yong gusto namin, magkaroon ng livelihood [programs] (What we want is to have livelihood programs),” said Jomar Carascal, one of the 71 farmers. He emphasized the need for the farmers to run their own machines. “Magkaroon ng mga makinarya na kami ang gagawa… panggiling ng mga bunot, paggawa ng [toothpaste] o sabon na galing sa niyog (To have machinery that we operate… mills for coir, machines to produce toothpaste or soap from coconut).”
Dela Cruz said that the programs they pushed for included “integrated village-level cooperatives,” which were no longer dependent on hacienderos (land-owners), and “[the] establishment of fresh coconut hubs as an alternative to the copra-centric industry,” which would promote other products from and uses of coconut.
“There is a major demand now for coconut products,” Tañada said, emphasizing the need to modernize the local industry. “So this potential should not pass us by, we should take advantage of it. And the funds are there, so what are we waiting for? And then the competition is going to get fiercer.”
Paghahatid
While the farmers were at the dialogue in Malacañang, their supporters from the civil sector waited at Mendiola. These included Fair Trade Alliance, Climate Walk and Asian Farmers Association, among others. The action, a closure to the November 20 salubong in Ateneo, was called the paghahatid (the delivery).
Dela Cruz says that the action is symbolic of their support for the farmers, and thanks the Ateneo community for their support. The welcome reached about 1,000 in attendance.
“We hear now government speaking the farmers’ language,” said Faustino in a mix of English and Filipino. “Yes, this is a step further. Well, it’s not much, but still, it is a step further in achieving the aspired coco trust fund for the livelihood of the farmers.”
The road to SC and the Congress still looms ahead. As Carascal says of their march: “Tuloy ang aming paglalakbay (We will continue to fight).”
[notification type=”note” title=”IN PHOTOS”]See The GUIDON’s photo coverage of the march here.[/notification]
