A congressman has filed a bill allocating portions of the coconut levy trust fund to government agencies, saying this will speed up its disbursement to beneficiaries.

Albay Representative Adrian Salceda made the proposal under his House Bill 2336, which amends the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act, the law which outlines the usage of the funds sourced from the taxes collected from coconut farmers, planters, millers, among other end-users during the regime of President Ferdinand Marcos, Sr.

Salceda’s bill amends Section 9 of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act by specifying that the utilization of the Trust Fund per government agency will be as follows:

15% for the planting and replanting of hybrid coconut seedlings by the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA);
5% for the training of coconut farmers and their families as listed in the Coconut Farmers Registry in farm schools through the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and Agricultural Training Institute (ATI); 
5% for research and development by the Department of Science and Technology – Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic and Natural Resources Research and Development (DOST-PCAARRD), Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA), and the Department of Agriculture – Bureau of Agricultural Research (DA-BAR);
10% for crop insurance through the Philippine Crop Insurance Corporation (PCIC);
10% for farm-to-market roads through the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)
5% for scholarships for farmers and their families through the Commission on Higher Education (CHED);
5% for health and medical programs for farmers and their families through the Department of Health (DOH);
5% for credit programs through the Development Bank of the Philippines (DBP) and the Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP); and
30% for shared facilities programs through the PCA.
Likewise, the House Bill also states that the Trust Fund management Committee may, in consultation with the PCA, reallocate such unutilized funds in the next fiscal year to other programs and projects consistent with the objectives of the coconut farmers and industry development plan, provided that the any of the implementing agencies mentioned above is unable to utilize or obligate its programmed allocation within a reasonable period.

In reallocation of unutilized funds in the next fiscal year, a priority status will be given to other implementing agencies also identified under the law, provided these agencies have submitted qualified  but unfunded or underfunded proposals due to limited initial allocations.

Further, Salceda’s bill authorizes the Trust Fund Management Committee to issue the implementing rules and strengthens the role of coconut farmers and local governments in identifying and monitoring programs.

“The President [Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr.] is right in saying there is a problem in utilizing the fund. It [disbursement] takes too long under the current arrangement, and it seems it's by design. Napakatagal po ng disbursement kasi masyadong pinarte-parte ang allocation. Hindi naman lahat ng agency, nagsu-submit ng proposal, bilang hindi rin nila core functions. Wala ring naging dagdag na project management offices sa mga ahensya,” Salceda said in a statement.

(The disbursement is taking too long because the allocation is parsed all over agencies. Not all agencies are submitting proposals, since this task is not their core function. Government agencies also do not have enough project management offices.)

Salceda was referring to Marcos, Jr.’s fourth State of the Nation Address (SONA) wherein the Chief Executive called on Congress to amend the Coconut Farmers and Industry Trust Fund Act to revitalize the coconut industry and for the fund to be more responsive to the needs of the farmers.

The existing law provides an initial allocation of P5 billion to the designated government implementing agencies, including disbursements for the formulation of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan, without specifying the allocation per government agency involved.

In addition, the existing law provides that that PCA will also have an allocation of P5 million for the formulation of the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan, and that the disbursements to the designated implementing agencies must be in accordance with the Coconut Farmers and Industry Development Plan once approved by the President.

“We’re simply trying to respond by making sure the fund moves toward the farmers faster and more directly. Pagkatagal-tagal po itong ipinaglaban ng mga magsasaka. The direction is clear. The executive is ready. The farmers are waiting. Let’s do our part,” Salceda added.

Source - https://www.gmanetwork.com