Coops still hopeful tax exemption stays

Cooperative leaders are still hopeful that the removal of the tax exemption for cooperatives would not pass in Congress even as the House Committee on Ways and Means passed the proposed “pro-poor tax reform bill” on May 3.

COOP-NATCCO Partylist Representative Sabiniano Canama said they will propose another amendment to the committee report during the plenary.

Canama is further appealing to cooperatives leaders and members to convince their respective congressional district representatives not to vote for the provision of House Bill 4774 which removes the tax exemption of cooperatives.

Canama made the appeal during the 47th Annual General Assembly Meeting and National Convention of Visayas Cooperative Development Center (VICTO) National in Panglao, Bohol last Saturday which was participated by around 800 cooperators from more than 100 cooperatives nationwide.

During the said assembly, keynote speaker Balasubramanian Iyer, International Cooperative Alliance (ICA) Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, emphasized the role of cooperatives in inclusive growth.

“Cooperatives have an intrinsic commitment to sustainability,” Iyer said.

Philippine Cooperative Center (PCC) Vice Chairperson, Ponciano Payuyo, former APEC Party-List representative, handed over to Iyer a copy of PCC’s position paper on the proposed bill.

Payuyo also asked the cooperatives to have a unified voice in the cooperative movement and have the “power to act” as the convention’s theme proclaimed.

The House of Representatives is expected to discuss in the plenary the proposed bill before the Legislature’s sine die adjournment on June 2.

Canama also said that Senator Juan Miguel Zubiri is also asking the support of the cooperatives to send the 23 Senators copies of coop’s resolutions opposing the repeal of tax exemption when the counterpart bill will be discussed in the Senate. On May 24, Zubiri, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Cooperative Development, is set to deliver a privilege speech to pre-empt the same proposal from his colleagues.

“Dako og possibility nga dili mapasar sa Senado,” said Canama.

Canama said that nothing happened to the show of force protest held on April 29 by cooperatives nationwide. At least 2,000 members of various cooperative groups in Cebu gathered at the Fuente Osmeña Circle to protest the proposals in Congress to repeal the tax exemption of coops across the country.