APRUBADO sa Senado ang isang panukalang batas na maglalagay ng Cooperative Development Officer (CDO) sa bawat lungsod, munisipyo at lalawigan.

Umani ng 19 affirmative votes kaya naipasa ang panukala sa ikatlo at huling pagbasa.

Sa pahayag, sinabi ni Senate Majority Leader Juan Miguel Zubiri na inamyendahan ng Senate Bill No. 1855 ang Republic Act No. 7160 o ang Local Government Code of 1991 na nagpanukala na gawing mandatory ang posisyon ng CDO sa bawat local government units.

Pinagsama-sama ang panukala mula sa Senate Bill Nos. 1327 na inawtor ni Zubiri; SB No. 1360 ni Sen. Risa Hontiveros; at SB No. 1510 ni Sen. Ramon Bong Revilla Jr.

Naniniwala si Zubiri, pangunahing awtor ng panukala na uunlad ang mahigit 28,794 cooperative sa buong Pilipinas kung magkakaroon ng suporta sa coop sektor na palalakasin ng LGUs.

“And if we are able to harmonize the sustainability goals of our coops, we would be able to see great progress and development across all our regions, and all our industries, and all our class sectors. That is what we are hoping to achieve with this measure, which will establish CDOs in all our local government units, in order for us to provide accessible on-the-ground government support to our coops and strengthen the cooperative presence across the nation. They will be able to reach communities in our most far-flung areas, and they will be able to deliver vital cooperative support on the grassroots level,” ayon kay Zubiri sa kanyang sponsorship speech.

Sa ilalim ng panukala, pangungunahan ng CDOs ang pagtukoy sa grupo, sektor o komunidad na maaaring iorganisa bilang cooperative upang matugunan ang kahirapan, lumikha ng trabaho at pakilusin ang komunidad patungo sa socio-economic enterprises at pag-unlad.

“CDOs will also provide assistance to prospective cooperatives by guiding them through their pre-registration or pre-membership seminars, and through their preparation of requirements for registration,” ayon kay Zubiri. (ESTONG REYES)