June 29, 2020 at 09:00 pm by
Alena Mae S. Flores
Illegal power connections were
allowed to proliferate in Iloilo City to benefit alleged syndicates who ran the
huge electricity pilferage operation, according to a member of the House of
Representatives.
Iloilo City Rep. Julienne Baronda
expressed support to the move of Iloilo Mayor Geronimo Treñas and the new
distribution utility More Electric and Power Corp. to go after pilferers of
electricity.
MORE Power’s technical analysis
showed there could be as many as 30,000 illegal power connections that existed
in the city especially under the old utility Panay Electric Co.
“Electricity pilferage has become a
practice because the violators have gotten away with their crime but this
should be put to a stop,” the lawmaker said.
She appealed to Iloilo residents to
help stop the said illegal operations by pointing to authorities where illegal
power connections exist or apply for an electricity connection with MORE Power.
Baronda said consumers were paying
for the cost of electricity stolen from the estimated 30,000 illegal
connections that proliferated under the old utility.
“This is not fair. I urge the
Ilonggos to stop this electricity pilferage,” Baronda said.
“Let us protect our interest. Let us
not allow ourselves to pay for the electricity consumed by those who steal
power through the systems loss. Let us report those who steal electricity
instead of condoning the pilferers,” she said.
She said MORE Power made it easier
for consumers to apply for their own meter account and teamed up with the city
government under its iKONEK Program.
MORE Power president Roel Castro
said the city government also made it easy for Iloilo consumers to secure the
necessary documents and safety inspection certificates required by law such as
the certificate of residency, government ID, oath of undertaking of connection
and meter and electrical safety inspection reports.
Castro said the illegal connections
overload the city’s power distribution system while increasing the cost of
electricity to paying customers.
"Ilonggos had to pay for the
electricity pilfered from such illegal connection for decades. Illegal
connections do not just burden legitimate consumers who pay for stolen
electricity but it also takes toll on the system which results in overloading,"
Castro said.
He said MORE Power already
determined who were behind the “organized business” of electricity pilferage in
Iloilo City.
MORE Power and the city government
target to reduce the estimated 30,000 illegal power connections by half this
year, Castro said.
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