(The Philippine Star) | Updated June 27, 2017 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines -
The National Electrification Administration (NEA) is proposing a
“comprehensive” emergency fund for electric power cooperatives (ECs) and its
member-consumers to assist them in their disaster relief, recovery,
rehabilitation and reconstruction efforts.
The proposal would have
a wider scope compared to Senate Bill 1461, also known as Electric Cooperatives
Emergency and Resiliency Fund Act of 2017.
NEA chief Edgardo
Masongsong said while he supports the bill that seeks to establish a
P750-million fund to enhance the resiliency of the electric cooperatives, the
proposed measure only covers the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the
distribution lines damaged during disasters.
“The proposed disaster
fund only covers the reconstruction distribution lines of electric
cooperatives. The concept of the bill is not holistic…Maybe we can have it
expanded to include recovery, relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction,” he
said in Filipino.
The bill filed by Sen.
Sherwin Gatchalian is proposing the creation of a P750 million dedicated
calamity fund to finance rehabilitation works and strengthen the resiliency of
electric cooperatives when natural calamities strike.
It would be an
alternative funding source for electric cooperatives’ disaster repair and
rehabilitation projects, apart from the interest-bearing calamity loans from
state-run NEA which supervises 119 ECs nationwide.
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