The National Institute for Cooperative Development (Infocoop) has been funneling large amounts of public resources to two cooperative organizations since 1988, based on an unconstitutional rule.
Beneficiaries of Infocoop’s Funding
The National Council of Cooperatives (Conacoop) and the Center for Cooperative Studies and Training (Cenecoop) are the two entities that have received these funds.
Financial Impact of Infocoop’s Funding
These two organizations have received 1.5% of Infocoop’s annual budget, totaling over ¢3.600 million from 2011 to 2020.
Detection and Response to Infocoop’s Unconstitutional Funding
The irregular transfers were detected by the supervisory board, leading to an unconstitutionality action filed by the then executive director before Sala IV in 2018. However, the disbursement of resources was only halted from 2018 to 2019 and resumed in 2020.
The Root of Unconstitutionality
The extraordinary budget approved in 1986 was intended for use in that year and the subsequent one, not for decades. This misuse occurred due to an unconstitutional modification of an article of the Cooperative Association Law by the Legislative Assembly.
Knowledge and Continuation of Unconstitutional Funding
The Comptroller General of the Republic and the Attorney General were aware of the situation. Despite being unconstitutional for three decades, the two entities will continue to receive public funds due to a new law approved in 2022 guaranteeing this.
