Millionaire Sagada coop started with P1.00 capital

HAPPY |WEEKEND

Gina Dizon

SAGADA, Mountain Province – With observance of 2012 International Year of Cooperatives, the millionaire Sagada Multipurpose Cooperative was cited as having started building its income from P.25 contributions from elementary pupils and P1.00 share capital of teacher-members.

That was in 1965 with an accumulated P420 share capital from 25 members.Forty six years since then, the now Sagada Multipurpose Cooperative bloomed into what is now a large cooperative with P117 million assets with 3,044 members composed of employees from other institutions and self- employed residents of the community.

Manager of the local cooperative, Nelson Dawilan said the committed volunteerism of pioneering teacher-officers was one major factor in the building of the cooperative into what it is now.

For years since the coop started in 1965, the officers acted on pure volunteerism with no monetary incentives for 10 years, Dawilan added.

In an interview over Radio Sagada, John Ladiong one of the members of the SMPC’s Board of  Directors noted  what  Ellen Reyes-Gawigawen, daughter of  the first coop secretary  Resurrection Reyes Sr.  said in one Coop assembly.      She said her father, former music supervisor of the Mountain Province Division of the Department of Education, would often times sleep late in the night to document policies and activities of the cooperative.  

Dawilan said the conscious documentation of policies and activities of the cooperative is one factor in the success of a cooperative to base succeeding actions of succeeding officers.

Ladiong cited Sagada Central School teacher Dominga Rasalan who volunteered to collect dues of members who loaned some money to keep the cooperative going. 

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Moved by the need to address low salaries of teachers who often fell prey to usurious moneylenders, the Sagada  Government Employees Cooperative Credit  Union  was  started in 1965 by  25  teacher-members based in Sagada. Justin Daoas, brother of coop president Bartholomew Daoas and employee of Benguet Corporation Inc urged the making of the cooperative and facilitated trainings rendered by BCI then.

The SGECCU was registered with the then Cooperative Administrative Office now Cooperative Development Authority (CDA) October 12, 1966.  The first coop president was Bartholomew Daoas, former assistant supervisor of the Mountain Province Division – Dep Ed. 

There were two vice presidents- former supervisor of public schools of Mt Province-Dep Ed Pagat Villanueva and James Pooten Sr, former supervisor for private schools of Mt Province Division-Dep Ed. Secretary was Resureccion Reyes Sr and the first treasurer was PioDacumos, former principal of Sagada Central School.

   

On March 17, 1998 the general assembly adopted the name Sagada Multipurpose Cooperative.   The annual assembly is set annually every March 17th.

Current services of the cooperative include collateralized regular loans of up to P1 million, salary loans of up to P50,000, emergency loans, micro finance loans of 7% interest per annum and mortuary assistance.The members receive patronage refunds and interest from their share capital as part of their benefits.