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PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 961
PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 961 - AN
ACT TO CODIFY THE LAWS DEALING WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE COCONUT AND
OTHER PALM OIL INDUSTRY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
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chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS,
the Philippine Coconut Authority (Authority) was created by P.D. No.
232 to integrate and coordinate the then diffuse efforts of the
Government of promoting the accelerated growth of the coconut and other
palm oil industry; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
WHEREAS, the experience accumulated by the Authority in the performance
of its delegated duties indubitably affirms the wisdom of the national
policy of making the coconut farmers direct participants in,
beneficiaries of, all the aspects of the development and growth of the
coconut and other palm oil industry; and
WHEREAS, to make more meaningful the participation of the coconut
farmers in the resulting benefits from the growth and development of
the industry and to re-affirm the intention of the Government in
restricting its role therein to the performance of purely governmental
functions and in allowing the coconut farmers to own coconut commercial
and industrial enterprises there is an imperative necessity of
accordingly re-structuring the various laws that have been enacted to
promote the rapid development of the industry and integrate said laws
into a single codified law;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Republic of
the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the
Constitution, do hereby decree and order the following:cralaw:red
ARTICLE I
Title and Policy of the State
Section 1. Title. — This Decree shall be known as the
"Coconut Industry Code."
Section 2. Declaration of Policy. — It is hereby
declared to be the policy of the State to promote the rapid integrated
development and growth of the coconut and other palm oil industry in
all its aspects and to ensure that the coconut farmers become direct
participants in, and beneficiaries of, such development and growth.
ARTICLE II
The Philippine Coconut Authority
Section 1. Creation of a Philippine Coconut
Authority. — To Implement and attain the declared national policy,
there is hereby created an independent public corporation to be known
as the Philippine Coconut Authority, hereinafter referred to as
Authority, directly reporting to, and supervised by, the President of
the Philippines.
Section 2. Principal Office. — The Authority shall
maintain its principal office in the Greater Manila Area but it may
establish branches and agencies within the Philippines as may be
necessary for the proper conduct of its business.
Section 3. Powers. — In the implementation of the
declared national policy, the Authority shall have the following powers
and functions: chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(a) To formulate and adopt a general programs of
development for the coconut and other palm oil industry in all its
aspects;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(b) To formulate and implement a nationwide
replanting program using precocious high-yielding hybrid seednuts and,
in the discretion of the Authority, the program may include new areas
provided that existing coconut farmers shall always be given priority;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(c) To distribute, for free, to coconut farmers the
hybrid coconut seednuts herein authorized to be acquired;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(d) To review and revise, and thereafter integrate
into the adopted general program of development, the existing policies,
projects and activities of all other governmental agencies directly
relating to the development of the industry;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(e) In coordination with the hybrid coconut seed farm
herein authorized to be established, to conduct genetical and
agricultural researches and investigations for the improvement of the
coconut palm productivity;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(f) To establish, operate and maintain one central
experiment station and such sub-stations as it may prescribe to
undertake extensive research in the control and eradication of coconut
diseases and pests and in the method of making copra; and in connection
therewith, all research stations and centers, facilities and equipment
operated by any government agency or instrumentality in the researches
on genetical, agronomical and disease control relating to coconut
culture are all hereby transferred to the Authority;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(g) To explore and expand the domestic and foreign
market for coconut products and by-products; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(h) To regulate the marketing and the exportation of
copra and its by products by establishing standards for domestic trade
and export and, thereafter, to conduct an inspection of all copra and
its by-products proposed for export to determine if they conform to the
standards established;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(i) To advise and thereafter prescribe by means of
rules and regulations a method of measuring the moisture content of
copra at its first domestic sale and a scale of deduction according to
the percentage of the moisture content;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(j) To impose and collect the levies herein
authorized to be collected;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(k) To impose and collect, under such rules that it
may promulgate, a fee of ten centavos for every one hundred kilos of
desiccated coconut, to be paid by the desiccating factory, coconut oil
to be paid by the oil mills and copra to be paid by the exporters,
which shall be used exclusively to defray its operating expenses;
and chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(l) To enter into, make and execute contracts of any
kind as may be necessary or incidental to the attainment of its
purposes and, generally, to exercise all the powers necessary to
achieve the purposes and objectives for which it is organized;
provided, however, it shall not engage in commercial/industrial
activities including the commercial production of hybrid coconut
seednuts.
Section 4. Governing Board. — The corporate powers
and duties of the Authority shall be vested in, and exercised by, Board
of seven (7) members to be appointed by the President, as follows:cralaw:red
(a) Two representative of the Government, one of whom
shall be designated by the President as Chairman and the other as
Vice-Chairman;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(b) Three members recommended by the Philippine
Coconut Producers Federation; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(c) One member recommended by the United Coconut
Associations of the Philippines;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(d) One member recommended by the owner and operator
of the hybrid coconut seednut farm herein authorized to be established.
The Board shall have the following additional powers and duties:cralaw:red
(a) To direct and manage the affairs of the
Authority;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(b) To prepare and adopt an annual budget;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(c) To disburse the proceeds of the levies for the
purposes herein authorized; and chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(d) To establish the internal organization of the
Authority and fix the salaries and other compensation of its officers
and employees.
Section 5. Meeting and Quorum. — The Board shall meet
as often as the exigencies of the service may demand. The presence of
at least four members shall constitute a quorum, and the vote of four
members shall be necessary for the adoption of any rules, resolution of
decision or any other act of the Board.
Section 6. Compensation of the Members of the Board.
— The members of the Board shall receive per diem of Two hundred pesos
for each meeting actually attended; Provided, That such per diems shall
not exceed One thousand pesos during any month for each member;
Provided further, That no other allowance or any form of compensation
shall be paid to them, except actual expenses in travelling to and from
their residences to attend board meetings. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 7. Executive Officers and Personnel. — The
chief executive officer of the Authority shall be the Administrator
assisted by such Deputy Administrators as the Board may prescribe, all
of whom shall be appointed, or removed, by the Board and delegated with
such powers and duties as it may prescribe.
All officers and employees of the Authority shall be selected and
appointed by the Board on the basis or merit and fitness.
Section 8. Departments. — The Board may establish
such departments as it may be convenient for the discharge of its
duties; Provided, That only one agronomical research department shall
be created.
ARTICLE III
Levies
Section 1. Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund Levy.
— The Authority is hereby empowered to impose and collect a levy, to be
known as the Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund Levy, on every one
hundred kilos of copra resecada, or its equivalent in other coconut
products delivered to, and/or purchased by, copra exporters, oil
millers, desiccators and other end-users of copra or its equivalent in
other coconut products. The levy shall be paid by such copra exporters,
oil millers, desiccators and other end-users of copra or its equivalent
in other coconut products under such rules and regulations as the
Authority may prescribe. Until otherwise prescribed by the Authority,
the current levy being collected shall be continued.
Section 2. Utilization of Fund. — All collections of
the Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund Levy shall be utilized by the
Authority for the following purposes:cralaw:red
(a) When the national interests so requires, to
provide a subsidy for coconut-based products the amount of which
subsidy shall be determined on the basis of the base price of copra or
its equivalent as fixed by the Authority and the pieces of
coconut-based products as fixed by the Price Control Council;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(b) To refund wholly or in part any premium duty
collected on copra or its equivalent sold prior to February 17, 1974;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(c) To finance the development and operating expenses
of the Philippine Coconut Producers Federation including projects such
as scholarships for the benefit of deserving children of the coconut
farmers; and
(d) To finance the establishment and operation of
industries and commercial enterprises relating to the coconut and other
palm oil industry as described in Section 9 hereof.
Section 3. Coconut Industry Development Fund Levy. —
There is hereby created a permanent fund to be known as Coconut
Industry Development Fund which shall be deposited, subject to the
provisions of P.D. No. 755, with, and administered and utilized by, the
Philippine National Bank through its subsidiary, the National
Investment and Development Corporation for the following purposes:cralaw:red
(a) To finance the establishment, operation and
maintenance of a hybrid coconut seednut farm under such terms and
conditions that may be negotiated by the National Investment and
Development Corporation with any private person, corporation, firm or
entity as would insure that the country shall have, at the earliest
possible time, a proper, adequate and continuous supply of high
yielding hybrid seednuts and, for this purpose, the contract entered
into by NIDC as herein authorized is hereby confirmed and ratified;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(b) To purchase all of the seednuts produced by the
hybrid coconut seednut farm which shall be distributed, for free by the
Authority to coconut farmers in accordance with, and in the manner
prescribed in, the nationwide coconut replanting program; Provided,
That farmers who have been paying the levy herein authorized shall be
given priority; chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(c) To defray the cost of implementing the nationwide
replanting program;chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
(d) To finance the establishment, operation and
maintenance of extension services, model plantations and other
activities as would insure that the coconut farmers shall be informed
of the proper methods of replanting; and
(e) The balance, if any, shall be utilized for
investments for the benefit of the coconut farmers as prescribed in
Section 9 hereof.
Section 4. Coconut Industry Development Fund Levy. —
As the initial funds of the Coconut Industry Development Fund, the
Authority is hereby directed to pay to the Coconut Industry Development
Fund the amount of One hundred million pesos, (P100,000,000.00) out of
the Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund and thereafter the Authority
shall pay to the said Fund an amount equal to at least twenty centavos
(P0.20) per kilogram of copra resecada or its equivalent out of its
current collections of the Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund Levy.
In the event that the Coconut Consumers Stabilization Fund Levy is
lifted, a permanent levy of twenty centavos (P0.20) is thereafter
automatically imposed on every kilogram of copra or its equivalent in
terms of other coconut products which shall be collected and paid to
the Coconut Industry Development Fund by copra exporters, oil millers,
desiccators and other end-users of copra or its equivalent under rules
prescribed by the Authority. The Philippine National Bank is hereby
authorized to invest the idle portion of the Fund in easily convertible
investments and all earnings therefrom shall form part of the
Fund. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
The sale or transfer of the hybrid coconut seednuts herein authorized
to be acquired is hereby declared exempt from the payment of the
coconut consumers stabilization levy and any and all taxes and fees of
whether kind and nature.
Section 5. Exemptions. — The Coconut Consumers
Stabilization Fund and the Coconut Industry Development Fund as well as
all disbursements of said funds for the benefit of the coconut farmers
as herein authorized shall not be construed or interpreted, under any
law or regulation, as special and/or fiduciary funds, or as part of the
general funds of the national government within the contemplation of
P.D. No. 711; nor as a subsidy, donation, levy, government funded
investment, or government share within the contemplation of P.D. 898,
the intention being that said Fund and the disbursements thereof as
herein authorized for the benefit of the coconut farmers shall be owned
by them in their own private capacities. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 6. Rules and regulations. — For a proper and
effective collection of the levies herein authorized to be imposed and
collected, the Authority is hereby given full power and authority to
promulgate such rules and regulations it may deem proper and necessary.
The Authority may require the persons liable to pay the levies to
submit periodic reports of their receipt of deliveries and/or purchases
of copra or its equivalent; Provided, however, That the Authority shall
have no power to require the disclosure of competitive information
and/or trade secrets such as names and identities of their buyers and
prices at which they sold the copra or its equivalents.
Section 7. Interest and Surcharges. — Hereafter, the
Authority shall have the power to impose and collect interest equal to
14% per annum of the levies paid after the due date thereof; Provided,
however, That in cases of willful or fraudulent failure to pay the
levy, as determined by the Authority the Authority may impose a
surcharge of 25% in addition to the assessable interest on late
payments. In disputed assessments where genuine issues of fact and/or
law are raised, the Authority may, in its discretion, enter into a
compromise settlement of the disputed assessment waiving in whole or
part the assessable levy, interest and surcharges. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 8. Deposit of Collections. — All collection
of the levies herein authorized to be imposed and collected shall be
deposited with the banking institutions prescribed by P.D. 755;
Provided, however, That the deposits made with the commercial bank
acquired for the benefit of the coconut farmers shall not be withdrawn
for purposes other than those herein authorized until the nationwide
replanting program shall have been fully implemented and realized; And
provided, finally, That the deposits made with the NIDC shall first be
utilized in the replanting program.
Section 9. Investments For the Benefit of the Coconut
Farmers. — Notwithstanding any law to the contrary, the bank acquired
for the benefit of the coconut farmers under P.D. 755 is hereby given
full power and authority to make investments in the form of shares of
stock in corporations organized for the purpose of engaging in the
establishment and the operation of industries and commercial activities
and other allied business undertakings relating to the coconut and
other palm oils industry in all its aspects and the establishment of a
research into the commercial and industrial uses of coconut and other
palm oil industry. For that purpose, the Authority shall, from time to
time, ascertain how much of the collections of the Coconut Consumers
Stabilization Fund and/or the Coconut Industry Development Fund is not
required to finance the replanting program and other purposes herein
authorized and such ascertained surplus shall be utilized by the bank
for the investments herein authorized.
Section 10. Distribution to Coconut Farmers. — The
investments made by the bank as authorized under Section 9 hereof shall
all be equitably distributed, for free, by the bank to the coconut
farmers except such portion of the investments which it may consider
necessary to retain to insure continuity and adequacy of financing of
the particular endeavor. In effecting the distribution of the
investments to the coconut farmers, the bank shall provide measures as
would ensure the viability and stability of the particular enterprise
and afford the widest distribution of the investments among the coconut
farmers.
ARTICLE IV
Penalties
Section 1. Whenever any person or entity willfully
and deliberately violates any of the provisions of this Act, or any
rules or regulation legally promulgated hereunder by the Authority, the
person or persons responsible for such violation shall be punished by a
fine of not more than P20,000.00 and by imprisonment of not more than
five years. If the offender be a corporation, partnership or a
juridical person, the penalty shall be imposed on the officer or
officers authorizing, permitting or tolerating the violation. Aliens
found guilty of any offenses shall, after having served his sentence,
be immediately deported and, in the case of a naturalized citizen, his
certificate of naturalization shall be cancelled. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
ARTICLE V
Miscellaneous Provisions
Section 1. Abolished Agencies. — The Coconut
Coordinating Council (CCC), the Philippine Coconut Administration
(PHILCOA) and the Philippines Coconut Research Institute (PHILCORIN)
are hereby abolished and their powers and functions transferred to the
Philippine Coconut Authority, together with all their respective
appropriations, funding from all sources, equipment and other assets
and such personnel as are necessary; Provided, That personnel separated
from the service hereby shall have the same rights and privileges
accorded to other government employees separated as a result of
implementation of the Integrated Reorganization Plan; Provided,
further, That the authority, through its Board, shall effect the
transfers herein provided in a manner that will insure the least
disruption of on-going programs and projects; Provided, moreover, That
in the period prior to the actual assumption of duties by the Board and
its functioning as such, all officers and employees of the abolished
agencies shall continue to exercise all their functions and discharge
all their duties and responsibilities until ordered otherwise by the
Board of the Authority, except that the Board of the PHILCORIN and the
PHILCOA as well as the Council itself, shall immediately cease to exist
upon the effectivity of this Decree, and their functions shall be
exercised by the Authority; And provided, finally, That until otherwise
so ordered by the President of the Philippines, the incumbent members
of the Governing Board of the Authority are hereby automatically
appointed as such members of the Board.
Section 2. Repealing clause. — All laws, executive
and administrative orders, rules and regulations inconsistent with the
foregoing provisions are hereby repealed or amended accordingly
including Republic Act Nos. 1145, 1365, 1369 and 2282. chanroblesvirtualawlibrary
Section 3. Separability clause. — If any provision of
this Decree is held unconstitutional, the same shall apply only to that
provision and the remainder hereof remains valid.
Section 4. Effectivity. — This Act shall take effect
immediately.
Done in the City of Manila,
this 14th day of July, in the year of our Lord, nineteen hundred and
seventy-six.
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