DANECO NOW By Engr. Albert M. Omega Davao del Norte Electric Cooperative (DANECO) is now an electric cooperative duly registered with CDA last May 21, 2012 with CDA Registration No. 9520-11021778. DANECO has faithfully adhered to the Cooperative Principle on; Education, Training and Information towards the officers, staff and members and general public. Several seminars and trainings were conducted based on Art. 2 of RA 9520 “Declaration of Policy. – It is the declared policy of the State to foster the creation and growth of cooperatives as a practical vehicle for promoting self-reliance and harnessing people power towards the attainment of economic development and social justice” xxxx “ Further, the State recognizes the principle of subsidiarity under which the cooperative sector will initiate and regulate within its own ranks the promotion and organization, training and research, audit and support services relative to cooperatives with government assistance where necessary.” The major seminar that DANECO has been conducting is the Ownership Seminar (OS). Those who have attended the OS seminars were given their share capital stock certificate. The seminar is continuously conducted throughout the franchise area of DANECO. As of now over 30,000 have already attended the OS and had already received their share capital stock certificates. Among the topics discussed in the OS were; Brief History of the Cooperatives, Cooperative Principles and Values, Conversion of Electric Cooperatives from Non-stock to Stock Cooperative, Comparison of Electric Bills between a Non-stock and Stock Cooperatives, Rights and Duties of Cooperative Members. It is worthwhile to note that the cooperative movement started in Europe way back in the 19th century, England and Germany where the two countries widely recognized to have organized the first successful cooperatives. A District Mayor in the name of Friedrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen in Heddesdorf, Westerwald, Germany was widely recognized as the founder of the cooperative movement. It was also a Local Government Official in the person of Governor Teodoro Sandiko of Bulacan who took the initiative of influencing Congress to pass the first law on cooperatives, Act No. 2508, otherwise known as the Rural Credit Law. It was passed on 11 February 1914. Subsequent laws were passed mostly on cooperatives for the agriculture sectors. As cooperativism is developing, a pseudo cooperative was introduced. They are what are known today as electric cooperatives, they are non-stock and government control cooperatives. Its origin in 1960, RA 2717, an Act to create the Electrification Administration, and other purposes was enacted to furnish cheap and dependable electric power and facilities in order to promote and accelerate the agricultural and industrial development of the country. On July 28, 1969, Congress repealed RA 2717 and enacted RA 6038, otherwise known as the National Electrification Administration Act, and declared that the national policy of the state is for the total electrification of the country. NEA is empowered to make loans to electric cooperatives and to assist and provide technical assistance. In August 6, 1973 ,after martial law was declared, RA 6038 was repealed by PD 269, known as the National Electrification Administration Decree, which converted NEA into a Government Owned and Controlled Corporation. It was in this period where the term electric cooperative was coined. On October 8, 1979 PD 269 was amended by PD 1645 by increasing the capitalization of NEA and broadening its lending and supervisory powers. The fall of dictatorship came about in 1987 and along came with it the restoration of democracy. The 1987 Constitution brought about several breakthroughs in our society. For the first time, cooperatives were recognized under our constitution as an important economic sector. Section 1, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution entitled National Economy and Patrimony, “The goals of the national economy are a more equitable distribution of opportunities, income and wealth; a sustained increase in the amount of goods and services produced by the nation for the benefit of the people; and an expanding productivity as the key to raising the quality of life for all especially the under privileged.” “In the pursuit of the goals, all sectors of the economy and all regions of the country shall be given optimum opportunity to develop. Private enterprises, including corporations, cooperatives and similar collective organizations, shall be encouraged to broaden the base of their ownership.” “Section 6. The use of property bears a social function, and all economic agents shall contribute to the common good. Individuals and private groups, including corporations, cooperatives and similar collective organizations, shall have the right to own, establish and operate economic enterprises, subject to the duty of the State to promote distributive justice and to intervene when the common good so demands.” “Section 15. The Congress shall create an agency to promote the viability and growth of cooperatives as instruments for social justice and economic development.” Congress, in its pursuit of its Constitutional mandate passed R.A. 6938, otherwise known as the Philippine Cooperative Code of 1990. Seeing the need for electric cooperatives to evolve into real cooperative and practicing as such, R.A. 6938 provided in Section 128……that cooperative created under PD 1645, shall be given three (3) years within which to qualify and register with the Cooperative Development Authority. It is clear then as it is right now that it is the policy of the government in accordance with the paradigm shift brought about by the 1987 Constitution to register existing electric cooperatives with the CDA so that these electric cooperatives can stand on their own and to slowly remove government control among them. In 2001 came R.A. 9136 otherwise known as the Electricity Power and Industry Reform Act of 2001. The electric cooperatives were then given a fresh start by the government by condoning a total of Php 18 billion of the loans of all 119 electric cooperatives. Under the EPIRA Law; privatization, liberalization and deregulation of the power industry from generation, transmission to the distribution sectors were introduced. Accordingly Sec. 57 of RA 9136 provides that “Electric cooperatives are hereby given the option to convert into either stock cooperative under the Cooperatives Development Act or stock corporation under the Corporation Code.” A referendum was held that led to the registration of DANECO with CDA as a stock cooperative. But right from the start NEA was obviously blocking through some stooges for DANECO to be registered with CDA, why? NEA has been doing this not only to DANECO but to all electric cooperatives that wanted to be converted to stock cooperative. That is why only a dozen electric cooperative have been successfully converted out of the 119. No doubt about it that the overwhelming votes for DANECO to be registered with CDA as a stock cooperative is in line with the goals of the national economy enshrined in our Philippine Constitution, “ a more equitable distribution of opportunities, income and wealth; …. and an expanding productivity as the key to raising the quality of life for all especially the under privileged.” At present our electric power rate is the highest in Asia and the fourth highest in the world. No wonder that we have the lowest Foreign Direct Investment of only 6.8% increase from 2007 to 2012, the only single digits percentage of five Asean countries such as Thailand (56%), Vietnam (40%), Malaysia (26%) and Indonesia (24%). And as a consequence despite of the 11 million OFW, we have the highest unemployment rate in the Asean region. At least in DANECO as a stock cooperative the electric rate will have a substantial decrease because of the tax incentives or exemptions that DANECO will be entitled to have once NEA will stop intervening the operation of DANECO as a stock cooperative. The lower rate is good for business and the generation of employment opportunities. The loss revenue of the government because of the tax exemptions will be regained by the proliferation of business enterprises and establishments and the employments that will be generated. Equally important is the ownership of the cooperative by the member- consumers themselves that will entitle them devidend and patronage refund thereby giving a dent to the unequal distribution of wealth in our country. Is it not an injustice that only 40 families owned the bulk of the economy of our country? Latest statistics showed that 6% of the Filipinos are rich; 15% are middle class; while 79% are poor. In the name of social justice and economic development, let us support DANECO as a stock cooperative for the sake of the people of Davao del Norte and Compostela Valley and to our country in general.
Posted on: Mon, 26 Aug 2013 00:07:08 +0000
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