“There’s no longer a room for reconsideration.”
This was stressed by Wennie Sancho, secretary general of consumer group Power Watch Negros Advocates, on the sidelines of the press conference at the Negros Press Club in Building in Bacolod City Tuesday.
Sancho, along with Power Watch Board Member Allen Grajo and former Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) director Roy Cordova, teared copies of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) which they are supposed to sign with the power distributioon utility.
“This is our public condemnation of the rejection of the MOU and a form of protest against the crooked minds that guide the hands of overcontracting," he said, adding that “there’s no reconciliation anymore.”
The consumer group leader recalled that the proposed agreement was presented to Ceneco president Dwight Carbon in August and November 2020 considering the worsening energy situation, the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, massive unemployment and economic recession.
The MOU stated that there's an urgent need for consultations between Ceneco management and consumers to address vital issues and concerns in the power industry to make the distribution utility more responsive to the needs of the consumer-member-owners (MCOs).
The “partnership deal” is hoped to pave way for the creation of Power Advocacy Consultative Council (PACC) aimed at engendering the ability of consumers to exercise freedom of action and evaluate the economic impact relevant to their participation in the decision making process vis-a-vis the policy direction of Ceneco.
“Recognizing the perennial problems of escalating rates and power outages in the power industry, it is imperative that there shall be a mechanism that will serve as a venue to discuss and resolve these problems affecting consumers,” it said.
The MOU shall serve as a document that would contain directives, advisories and information to underscore the noble intent and purposes of convening the PACC to define the duties and responsibilities of its members, it added.
Its supposed signing was in April this year.
However, it was postponed allegedly because of the “opposition” made by a new member of Ceneco Board citing the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) threat and the need to further study the agreement as reasons.
The Power Watch official said he has not received any communication from the management of the electric cooperative with regards to the status of the MOU signing.
Expressing disappointment and frustration to the members of Ceneco Board and its acting general manager and project supervisor Atty. Dan Pondevilla, Sancho said the management’s refusal to the group’s good intention for transparency at the cooperative is an insult to the consumers.
“They could have intervened. Good intention is not enough,” Sancho said, adding that “we will stay as watchdogs and file cases immediately once we saw irregularities at the electric cooperative like overcontracting.”
There’s no more talks, no more reconsideration, he said.
Armed with a copy of the resolution passed by the previous set of members of Ceneco Board, Cordova said this is a clear violation considering that it was already a policy.
Resolution No. 12880 unanimously passed by Ceneco Board headed by its president Dwight Carbon last March 9 is “a resolution approving the Memorandum of Understanding between Power Watch Negros Advocates and Central Negros Electric Cooperative as recommended by project manager and acting general manager Atty. Dan Pondevilla.”
Cordova, who was vice president during that time, said “denying this should have a Board resolution emanated from the collegial, collective and deliberative activities of the Board that would supersede the first resolution.”
“So, this is already moot and academic and it should be executed by the management,” he pointed out.
For his part, Pondevilla said what the new directors need from Sancho is a meeting for a clarification of the provisions of the MOU.
“I don’t know why he [Sancho] reacted violently because the directors did not oppose the MOU,” he said, stressing that “there was no opposition, in fact there’s already a Board Resolution approving it.”
When asked if he was able to communicate with Sancho on the matter, the Ceneco acting general manager said the Power Watch official was aware of the demand of the new director.
“I was prevented from calling for a meeting because right after the postponement of the signing of the MOU, Sancho made several bad comments against the directors,” Pondevilla said.
On the pronouncement of the consumer group that there’s no more room for reconsideration and reconciliation, the project supervisor of Ceneco said he is open to mediate between the directors and Sancho “so that we can arrive at a resolution beneficial to the consumers.”
Ceneco caters to the largest number of electric consumers in the province including those in cities of Bacolod, Bago, Talisay and Silay, and towns of Murcia and Salvador Benedicto. (EPN)