good news! “Supreme Court stops EOs on coco levy funds”

The Supreme Court stopped the implementation of two orders of President Benigno Aquino III aiming to manage billions of coco levy funds. 

EO 179 provides for the inventory, privatization and transfer coco levy assets in favor of government. EO 180, meanwhile, mandates the transfer of the funds to government for an “Integrated Coconut Industry Roadmap Program.”

In issuing the TRO, the tribunal acted on a petition filed by the Confederation of Coconut Farmers Organization of the Philippines, which argued that the executive orders were “rushed” and would expose the fund to plunder.

Charlie Avila, head of the farmers’ group, said in May that Aquino’s orders violate a Supreme Court decision prescribing the funds “only for the benefit of all coconut farmers and for the development of the coconut industry.”

kudos to the farmers groups.  and charlie avila has a blog pala.  maybe i’ll send him my coco levy posts, get some answers to questions i’ve long been asking.