INQUIRER.net
2:30 pm | Wednesday, December 18th, 2013
MANILA, Philippines – Senate Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Wednesday asked the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to suspend the scheduled P4.15-rate increase by the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) amid collusion allegations among power producers in the country.
“Let’s suspend the rate increase because there are allegations of collusion,” Recto said during the hearing of the Senate committee on energy.
ERC chairperson Zenaida Cruz-Ducut, who was present at the hearing, requested that they would be given time to study the proposal to find out if it was “feasible.”
But in her opening statement, Ducut said the ERC was already taking steps to find out if there was indeed a collusion as she promised to punish those who take advantage of the situation and recover the charges that were passed on to the consumers.
“Katulad ninyo at ng milyon-milyong kababayan natin, kami po sa ERC ay lubha ring nababahala sa nangyaring pagtaas ng presyo ng kuryente noong nakaraang buwan na syang dahilan kung bakit kinailangang itaas ng Meralco ang kanyang singil para sa buwang ito,” she said.
“Marami ang umalma at nagbato ng sisi sa aming ahensya . Bakit inapruban ng ERC ang pagtataas ng singil ng Meralco? Bakit hindi dumaan sa pagdinig? Marami din ang nag akusa na may nangyari ng sabwtan ang mga kumpanya ng kuryente, na may namamantala sa merkado.”
“May mga hakbang na ginagawa ang ERC sa pakikipagtulungan ng DOE (Department of Energy) upang malaman ang katotohanan sa likod ng mga paratang na sabwatan at pananamantala. Tulad po ninyo, hangad din po naming maparusahan ang mga mapapatunayang nagkasala at maibalik sa kanila ang labis nilang nasingil,” Ducut added.
Instead of increasing the power rate, Senator Antonio Trillanes suggested to just use the Malampaya gas fund to pay the P9.7 billion that Meralco was trying to recover from its consumers starting this December, and in February and March next year.
After all, Trillanes said, it was the Department of Energy’s fault that it was not able to preempt the rate increase.
Trillanes also grilled Meralco when its president, Oscar Reyes, failed to immediately say if there would be a rollback of electricity rate by April or after the staggered increase ended in March.
“Ito ha, ERC (Energy Regulatory Commission) rebyuhin n’yo itong numbers, e pinalulusutan tayo rito. Maliwanag ito,” Trillanes said.
But Reyes protested the senator’s remarks: “Your honor, with all due respect, we’d like to take exception to the comment na pinalulusutan ang honorable committee na ito.”
“We wish to assure, your honor, there’s no single centavo over recovery in the way we will implement it. We will simply recover the absolute amount…” Reyes said. source
No comments:
Post a Comment