‘No emergency powers needed to address power, transport woes’

Business Mirror

14 Jan 2014 

 

Written by Butch Fernandez

Saying the Constitution already vests the presidency with emergency powers to take over certain strategic industries during crises, President Aquino affirmed on Tuesday his rejection of the proposal for Congress to give him extraordinary authority to deal with a “looming power crisis” and with mass transport problems.

“I’d like to clarifiy...I never asked for that [emergency powers]. That was a purely congressional initiative,” Mr. Aquino told reporters at the groundbreaking of the $600-million First Gen Corp.’s San Gabriel Power Plant in Batangas.

Indicating the government has other available options, Mr. Aquino distanced himself from the proposal floated by administration Rep. Ben Evardone of Eastern Samar for Congress to grant him emergency powers so he can more quickly address problems arising from supply and pricing issues in the energy sector.

The Supreme Court is set to hear oral arguments on a pending petition filed by several groups against distributor Manila Electric Company over its P4.15 per kilowatt-hour rate hike that was reflected in December 2013 household bills to cover the utility’s generation cost that spiked as power producers quoted it record high prices.

Besides the constitutional provision already granting his office emergency powers in a crisis, Mr. Aquino noted that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act also provides that if profits of power industry players are “unreasonable” they can be compelled to “return the profits.”   source