By Nora Soriño
Iligan City Bureau Chief
and Sita Asequia
Correspondent
Iligan City — In a decision dated Oct. 8, the Supreme Court en banc ordered the Energy Regulatory Commission to have the power distributors like the Manila Electric Co. to bill electric consumers “in the least cost manner.” This was revealed in a press conference recently by Uriel Borja, one of the owners of the Iligan Light and Power, Inc. here.
This was in a case that has the National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reforms as Petitioner, with the Energy Regulatory Commission, Manila Electric Co. and Commission on Audit as respondents.
The SC, headed by Lucas Bersamin, Chief Justice, sat en banc with other Justices Antonio Carpio, who penned the decision, Diosdado Peralta, Estela Perlas Bernabe, Marivic Leonen, Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, Andres Reyes, Jr., Alexander Gesmundo, Jose Reyes, Jr, and Ramon Paul Hernando.
In coming up with such directive to the ERC, it cited among other things, that the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) took into consideration, in their billings to customers, adding the costs of maintaining such structures as the Meralco theater, Meralco museum, Meralco wellness center, its shooting range, tennis courts, fitness center, oval/open spaces which were also passed on to electric consumers.
Among its statement in said SC decision, it said that “to protect the consuming public from exorbitant or unconscionable charges by distribution utilities, the State regulates the acquisition cost of electricity that distribution utilities can pass on to consumers.”
In like manner, Borja said, what happens to Meralco in the manner of billing is also applied to ILPI, with the latter charging also “exorbitant rates’’ due to its acquisition of some” dysfunctional” power plant with the costs passed on to the customers here too. He said the ILPI, through its subsidiary, the Mapalad Energy Generating Co. (MEGC) resulting in “undue power rates increases,” he said.
“Costs skyrocketed because of these practices of power distributors,” Borja said.
Borja said that these practices of distributors of power should be monitored if only to temper the costs of power shouldered by the consumers. Mindanao, he said should have cheaper electricity because the hydropower source is here. But what happens, the government did not take that into account and if we are not vigilant, and if we do not assert our rights, then we will all be suffering these high power costs.
Borja, to note, though one of the owners of ILPI, is not a member of the Board of Directors chaired by cousin Ralph Casiño, he said. But his sister, Patricia, is a member of the ILPI board, he said. Hence he knows what is going on with the power industry here and even in Manila.
Asked about an ERC Commissioner then who committed suicide because of some practices of the ERC, Borja said he knew the guy. “He was an upright guy,” he said.
