DAVAO CITY—Its assets already worth P4-billion, Tagum Cooperative kept its financial health amply protected going into its golden year anniversary next year with stringent rules applied even to its own set of officers when availing of loans and other services.
The cooperative also pushed for wider financial literacy among its members, most of whom are loan applicants, “to educate our applicant members that availing of loans is not the only way to get out of personal and family financial mess.”
Juris D. Perez, general manager of the cooperative based in the Davao del Norte capital of Tagum City, cited the strict adherence to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas regulation when dealing with so-called Dosri loans, meaning the directors, officers, stockholders and their related interests, which are common pitfalls among lending institutions. “Just one day late in meeting the deadline of payment would mean that one cannot run at the next election of the cooperative,” she said.
“Actually, we have been consciously aware of that and we have lived by that policy,” she added. “While that policy is strictly for banks and financial houses, we are applying that to our cooperative to protect our members.”
Perez said Tagum Cooperative has assets reaching P4 billion and a membership roster of 75,121 spread across mostly in the Davao del Norte capital and the other city of Panabo, plus the towns of Carmen, Santo Tomas and Nabuntaran, as well as in Davao City and Agusan del Norte.
Miriam R. Baloyo, cooperative director, said the business started in 1967 with 38 members and only P80 in combined share capital.
Thus far, the cooperative has extended business loans of more than P1 million, with one instance lending as much as P29 million to a businessman for his gadgets and information technology business and to his school. “We based it on the capacity to pay of the applicant.”