Legal basis and covered CDA issuances
- The circular implements procedures tied to Article 140 of Republic Act No. 9520 (the Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008).
- The circular also provides guidance for actions connected to CDA Memorandum Circular No. 2012-01, S-2012.
- The circular expressly treats the Code, its implementing rules, and other CDA issuances as part of the relevant “Cooperative Laws” framework under Section 2.
Policy orientation and intent
- The circular provides operational guidelines for commencing actions involving specific prohibited acts or omissions under Article 140 of Republic Act No. 9520 and related matters under CDA Memorandum Circular No. 2012-01, S-2012.
Core definitions for application
- “Authority” refers to the Cooperative Development Authority and its Extension Offices (Section 2).
- “Board of Administrators” refers to the governing body of the CDA (Section 2).
- “Code” refers to Republic Act No. 9520 (Section 2).
- “Cooperative Laws” refers to the Code, its implementing rules and regulations, and other issuances of the Authority (Section 2).
- “Legal Division” refers to the Legal Division of the CDA Central Office (Section 2).
- “Legal Unit” refers to the Legal Unit of the CDA Extension Offices (Section 2).
Coverage: acts, omissions, and fraud matters
- The circular covers acts or omissions defined and penalized under Article 140 of the Code under Section 3.A.
- The circular covers use of the word “cooperative” by any person or organization unless duly registered as a cooperative under the Code, except as provided for under Article 130 of the Code (Section 3.A.1).
- The circular covers offenses punishable by imprisonment of not less than one (1) year nor more than five (5) years or a fine of not more than Fifty thousand pesos (P50,000.00) or both at the discretion of the court under Section 3.A.2.
- The circular covers the following specific Article 140 prohibited acts or omissions under Section 3.A.2:
- Omission or refusal to furnish any information, report, or other document required under the Code (Section 3.A.2(a)).
- Providing information, reports, or documents required under the Code which the person knows to be false or misleading (Section 3.A.2(b)).
- Omission or refusal to keep a book or register required under the Code or to make the required entry (Section 3.A.2(c)).
- Making a required entry in a book or register which the person knows to be false or misleading (Section 3.A.2(d)).
- Hindering an authorized person from making an inspection, audit, examination or investigation required under the Code (Section 3.A.2(e)).
- Failure to comply with an order or written instructions issued or given by the Authority (Section 3.A.2(f)).
- Violation of provisions regarding transactions with a restricted party (Section 3.A.2(g)).
- Abetting, counseling, allowing, authorizing, or commanding another person to commit an offense punishable by the Code (Section 3.A.2(h)).
- The circular covers any violation of any provision of the Code for which no penalty is imposed under Section 3.A.3.
- The circular also covers the fraud, irregularity, or anomaly referred to under CDA Memorandum Circular No. 2012-01, S-2012 under Section 3.B.
Procedure for commencing actions
- For actions under CDA Memorandum Circular No. 2012-01, S-2012, the Legal Division/Legal Section initiates the filing of the complaint only upon approval and authorization of the CDA Board of Administrators (Section 4.A).
- For CDA Memorandum Circular No. 2012-01, S-2012 actions, the complaint is filed before the appropriate Judicial, Quasi-Judicial, or other appropriate government agency (Section 4.A).
- For actions involving violations of Article 140 as specified in Section 3.A, the following procedure applies under Section 4.B.
- Where a probable violation exists, based on a written or oral report, the Executive Director/Regional Director designates an employee or officer of the Authority to conduct evaluation, verification, and validation (Section 4.B).
- The designated employee or officer must prepare and submit the necessary evaluation/verification report to the Executive Director/Regional Director (Section 4.B).
- The Executive Director/Regional Director endorses and submits the report to the Board of Administrators (Section 4.B).
- If the evaluation/verification report includes a recommendation to file a criminal action, then upon approval and authorization of the CDA Board of Administrators, the Legal Division initiates the filing of the complaint before the appropriate Judicial, Quasi-Judicial, or other appropriate government agency (Section 4.B).
Powers of the designated evaluator
- The designated employee or officer may enter the premises of the cooperative during working hours and in the presence of the cooperative’s officers, members, or employees (Section 4, Powers).
- If cooperative officers, members, or employees are absent, the designated person(s) may secure the presence of any other officer or employee to witness the entire proceedings (Section 4, Powers).
- The designated person may examine, take, and preserve testimony of any person relating to the acts or omissions under evaluation or verification (Section 4, Powers).
- The designated person may inspect material documents or records of the cooperative relating to the acts or omissions under evaluation or verification (Section 4, Powers).
- The designated person may secure certified true copies of documents necessary for the preparation of the evaluation/verification report (Section 4, Powers).
Separability and immediate implementation
- Section 5 provides separability: if any part of the guidelines is declared invalid, the remaining provisions continue in full force and effect.
- Section 6 provides that the guidelines take effect immediately.