‘Party list does not represent interest of consumers’

Your article “‘Power bloc’ party lists support Robredo for president; cites VP’s vow to bring electricity to far-flung areas” (News, 2/17/22) calls for a response from our organization, National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms Inc. (Nasecore), which is advocating the interests of 13 million electricity consumers throughout the country.

While we are one with the objective to “bring electricity to far-flung areas,” we are not totally comfortable with Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association (Philreca) party list being part of the power bloc, because, as you know, Philreca does not have the interest of electricity consumers at its heart. In fact, its nominees are facing a number of complaints lodged by electricity consumers before the Commission on Elections (Comelec), National Electrification Administration (NEA), Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Ombudsman. Thus, its support for Vice President Leni Robredo can only be taken negatively and all its abuses, at the expense of the millions of electricity consumers, will eventually be exposed to its own destruction.

To cite examples, both Philreca and Association of Philippine Electric Cooperatives (Apec) representatives Presley de Jesus and Sergio Dagooc have been charged before the Ombudsman for violation of the anti-graft law and the 1987 Constitution for holding on to their positions as president and general manager, respectively, of their electric cooperatives while serving at the House of Representatives. Philreca and several EC-allied party lists, Apec, Recobada, and Ako Padayon Pilipino, are respondents in a complaint filed by Nasecore before the Comelec for receiving campaign contributions from electric cooperatives.

Further, it is this alleged unlawful campaign contributions made by electric cooperatives to Philreca that led the Office of the President to dismiss from service their close ally and so-called “supremo,” erstwhile administrator of the NEA Edgardo R. Masongsong.

In other words, the posturing of Philreca as representative of electric cooperatives and, by extension, their members, is self-serving, grossly inaccurate, and misleading.

PETE L. ILAGAN
President
First Nominee
Nasecore: Kontra Brownout Party-List