Dino hails Cebu media coop

CEBU, Philippines - Presidential Assistant for the Visayas Michael Lloyd Dino called the only media cooperative in the country, the Cebu News Workers Multipurpose Cooperative (Newscoop), a success story during its 20th Annual General Assembly yesterday.

“Newscoop is a success story, as far as cooperativism in the Philippines is concerned,” Dino said, adding that the coop’s chairman Elias Baquero told him that the coop currently has P37.904 million in assets. A far cry from the P72,000 capital it started with way back in 1996.

The cooperative, which recently opened its membership to those outside the media, currently has over a thousand members. Joining just yesterday was former Cebu City mayor Michael Rama. Other politicians who have joined the cooperative include Cebu City Vice Mayor Edgardo Labella and Tuburan Mayor Aljun Diamante.

Dino said he and his staff will also enroll as members of the Newscoop.

Newscoop has had an uptrend growth of annual profit starting with P1 million in 2012, P1.2 million in 2013, P1.7 million in 2014, P2.9 million in 2015, and P3.843 million in 2016. Dino said the figures are a testament of economic viability of Newscoop.

“While business and trade are drivers of economic development, I believe that cooperatives are great contributors to the socioeconomic development of our country. Ergo, you do not only help the society as the fourth estate of the republic by being scribers of true and reliable information because you also help stir the economy in Cebu by providing easy access to credit to your member-owners,” Dino said in his speech.

Dino added that while members of the media in Cebu compete with each other in doing their jobs, the cooperative brings them together, especially during the celebration of the Cebu Press Freedom Week which is celebrated every third week of September.

“Speaking about press freedom, I am contemplating to push to the Malacañang an executive issuance that will recognize your press freedom week,” Dino said, adding that met with leading members of the Cebu media to help his office with the staff work needed before a presidential directive is signed to this effect.  —/BRP (FREEMAN)