DAVAO City Second District Councilor Al-Ryan Alejandre invited representatives of the Agdao Multipurpose Cooperative (AMPC) to formally discuss the issues facing one of Mindanao’s largest cooperatives.
Alejandre, chair of the Committee on Cooperative Development and People’s Participation, filed a measure for first reading to make sure the city council formally addresses the concerns of AMPC members.
“While there is a pending case before the Court of Appeals regarding this issue, the members of the AMPC still deserve to be updated on its status, for they cannot be left in the dark about an issue that directly affects their savings and their families’ security,” he said in his privilege speech on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at the Sangguniang Panlungsod.
The councilor expressed dismay over AMPC’s ongoing management conflict. He revealed that his office had received a letter from Josephine Pasilong, the newly elected AMPC chairperson, who was chosen during a Special Representative Assembly organized by the Cooperative Development Authority-Davao Region (CDA-Davao).
Pasilong raised concerns about the alleged ousted officials who refused to vacate their posts and continued running the cooperative despite their termination.
Earlier this year, tensions within the cooperative made headlines after a viral video showed members forcibly entering AMPC’s Obrero branch in March to protest its leadership.
Alejandre clarified he is not siding with any group, stressing that the courts will decide the outcome of the disputes. What matters, he said, is safeguarding the interests of AMPC’s 58,000 members in Davao City. He said they should not be seen as mere statistics but as families relying on the cooperative’s integrity and stability. He emphasized the responsibility of city leaders to safeguard their hard-earned savings and ensure that the organization they entrusted remains transparent and accountable.
Alejandre said he has scheduled a committee hearing to hear both sides. He emphasized the inquiry is not meant to interfere with the judicial process, but to raise relevant issues in aid of legislation and oversight, and to ensure AMPC members are protected.
His proposal to take up the AMPC concerns was approved on first reading the same day. RGP
