Business Mirror
Published on Sunday, 10 March 2013 20:09 Written by Jonathan L. Mayuga / Reporter
WORKERS on Sunday hit the decision of the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) to impose a 10.1-centavo kilowatt-hour increase in electricity rates starting this month, saying it would add burden to Filipinos who are already burdened by a combination of high prices and low wages.
The increase was a result of a 19.38-centavo universal-charge increase imposed by state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) which aims to recover so-called stranded-contract costs worth P53 billion.
Elmer Labog, Kilusang Mayo Uno chairman, said Filipinos should not be made to pay for electricity, which they did not consume.
“We should not be milked dry so that big capitalists can rake in huge guaranteed profits,” he said, noting that the 19.38-centavo universal charge approved by the government would go to the profits of power producers.
According to Labog, the unabated increase in electricity rates bolsters the claim that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (Epira) was doing more harm than good, and should be scrapped.
He said the government should seriously consider proposals to revoke contracts with independent power producers (IPPs).
“The conditions of the deals entered into by the government with IPPs are clearly detrimental and exploitative to Filipinos,” he added.
Stranded contract costs refer to the excess of the cost of electricity under contracts entered into by the National Power Corp. (Napocor) with IPPs as of December 31, 2000, over the actual selling price of the contracted energy output of the said contracts in the market.
Under the Epira, PSALM absorbed the debts incurred by Napocor.
These deals ensured that the capacity of corporations to produce power is paid, whether the power they produced is actually consumed by the public or not.
The group is co-organizing protest actions on March 20 as part of its “Protestang Bayan Laban sa Nagtataasang Presyo at Pribatisasyon [People’s Protest Against High Prices and Privatization]” to condemn the increasing prices of petroleum products and rates of power and water, and the alleged collusion of the Aquino administration with big capitalists.
“The Aquino [administration] has always sided with big capitalists as far as price and rate hikes are concerned. It shows no compassion toward Filipinos who are suffering from low wages and increasing prices,” he explained.
According to Labog, despite numerous evidence that show the detrimental effects of privatization to Filipinos, the Aquino administration continues to uphold privatization deals. Worse, it continues to entertain privatization, including those of the most basic social services, such as health and transportation, citing the privatization of 26 government hospitals and the Metro Rail Transit and Light Rail Transit transport systems. source
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