UCPB hits critics claiming misuse of coco levy funds

Bogus nongovernment organizations (NGO), similar to those set up by alleged pork scam queen Janet Lim-Napoles, are merely after their piece of the controversial coco-levy fund amid allegations of misuse against state-appointed officials.

Efren Villaseñor, a board member of sequestered United Coconut Planters Bank (UCPB), on Thursday hit back at the lender’s critics, saying these unknown organizations were not legitimate representatives of coconut industry.

“I asked around. I asked my friends and others in the coconut industry. These people are unknown. They only want a part of the money,” said Villaseñor, who was appointed to the UCPB board to represent small farmers.

“These groups don’t have legitimate claims to this money. They are Napoles-type organizations, that much is clear. And they are using our names to benefit from the coco levy fund,” he said.

He was referring to the National Coalition of Filipino Consumers (NCFC) and militant-backed Coco Levy Funds Ibalik sa Amin (CLFIA), which have criticized the UCPB’s move to seek clarification over the real ownership of part of the P74 billion in coco levy funds held in trust by the state.

The UCPB is cited in a petition for declaratory relief at the Supreme Court (SC) regarding an 11-percent stake the bank had in the CIIF Oil Mills Group, which, in turn, used coco levy funds to buy shares in San Miguel Corp. (SMC).

The shares were later converted into preferred shares and redeemed at a value of P71 billion, including dividends for the shares. Coconut Planters Life Assurance Corp. (Cocolife) has filed a similar claim at the high tribunal. UCPB said that if its and Cocolife’s stakes in CIIF were recognized, the two firms were entitled to P15.6 billion of the money. The cases are still pending with the high tribunal.

UCPB corporate secretary Ildefonso Jimenez said the money would help nurse UCPB back to financial health, which would allow it to lend more to farmers. He described the UCPB as a “coco levy asset.”

Villaseñor said the coco levy fund, which was collected from farmers during the Marcos administration, should be used for projects that benefit the entire coconut industry. He said this should involve a national survey to identify real coconut farmers, which would give them proper representation in coco levy discussions.

The money should also fund the development of a curriculum that would help usher in innovation in the coconut industry. A massive replanting program should also be launched nationwide to replace old coconut trees and improve their yields. Paolo G. Montecillo