THE utilization of coconut- levy funds for the benefit of farmers has again hit the wall with the President vetoing his priority bill creating the proposed Coconut Farmers and Industry Fund on the ground that it may violate the Constitution.
This was the second time that the President exercised his power to veto a bill in its entirety. The first one he vetoed was a related bill, particularly on strengthening the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA). He justified that first veto by citing a lack of proper safeguards against corruption.
While the coconut levy is one of the priority bills of the Duterte administration, the President also concluded after much deliberation that the bill is “lacking in vital safeguards to avoid the repetition of painful mistakes committed in the past.”
“In view of these considerations, I am constrained to veto the above-mentioned Enrolled Bill, even as I am hopeful that Congress and the Executive will continue working together towards a formulation of the relevant bill that is acceptable to all,” Duterte said in his veto message addressed separately to the Senate and the House of Representatives.
He pointed to the establishment of an effectively perpetual Trust Fund in the Senate Bill 1233 and House Bill 5745 as the provision which was considered violative of the Constitution.
Under Article VI, Section 29(3) of the 1987 Constitution, “All money collected on any tax levied for a special purpose shall be treated as a special fund and paid for such purpose only. If the purpose for which a special fund was created has been fulfilled or abandoned, the balance, if any shall be transferred to the general fund of the Government.”
Moreover, Duterte said the absence of a limit on a covered land area for entitlement to the benefit of Trust Fund “may disproportionately benefit wealthy coconut farm owners more than the smallholder farmers who desperately need the government’s affirmative assistance.”
Last, he lamented that the broad powers given to the PCA “undermine relevant regulations and safeguards that were established precisely to avoid abuses.”
The second veto comes months after senators made a last-ditch effort to avert it.
Last October, senators sought the return of enrolled copies of the bill passed by Congress to the President’s office as it failed to introduce an amendment included during the bicameral conference.
Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel F. Zubiri earlier said the President wants the bill amended so that the majority of the trust fund board members who will distribute the funds to farmers would be composed of government officials.
The bill was considered a landmark measure as it stipulates how the coco-levy fund should be used.
The coconut-levy funds have been stuck in court disputes from 2012, when the Supreme Court awarded the shares bought with the coco-levy funds to the government, to be used for coconut farmers and the industry.
Image credits: Cargill Inc./Bloomberg