Published
By Myrna M. Velasco
The
country’s electric cooperatives (ECs) are up in arms against the maneuver of
the Department of Energy (DOE) recommending the cancellation of
legislative-issued franchises of at least 17 in this league of power industry
players.
The DOE admitted the
submission of the franchise cancellation proposal, but it said that was
eventually withdrawn for further review.
But the Philippine
Rural Electric Cooperatives Association Inc. (PHILRECA) still can’t rest easy
on that franchise cancellation threat, which the group claimed was initiated by
Energy Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi via an endorsement to Congress and channeled
through House Speaker Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
The 17 ECs had been tagged in the correspondence to Congress as
“underperforming and financially and technically distressed.”
PHILRECA nevertheless
asserted that “this unjust and biased recommendation was done without prior
consultation with the concerned electric cooperatives.”
The group added that
the endorsement “was done in haste and in the absence of due diligence on the
part of the Department of Energy,” and when Cusi realized such blunder, the
department was prompted to revoke and recall the franchises’ cancellation
proposal.
Given recent turn of
events, PHILRECA emphasized that “while we believe that recalling and revoking
the original endorsement is the right thing to do, we cannot help but express
our sentiments because his actions have already caused significant damage and
irreparable negative impression to the ECs.”
Cusi has been in a never-ending tug-of-war with the ECs, as the energy
department has been turning out to be a very nonrestrictive ally of investors
wanting to encroach in the service areas other power utilities.
Thus, even with the
DOE-announced review of the ECs’ performance, the electric cooperatives are
incredulous about the process being pursued by the energy department.
“All these claims fall
short of what the Secretary has been doing for the past months. Early last
year, he has consistently declined restoring the budget cuts to the
government’s sitio electrification program,” PHILRECA said.
The group further
stressed “the endorsement letter to the House of Representatives and the DOE
statement are meant to serve one purpose and one purpose alone: to manipulate
the mindset of the public for them to think that the electric cooperatives are
not performing well. And with this comes the justification on the entry of
private, for-profit and zero-experience corporations.”
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