BY GERARD NAVAL

THAT Jesus Santos, a lawyer and spokesman of presidential spouse Mike Arroyo, called up PCGG chairman Camilo Sabio about the Government Service Insurance System-Meralco row is clear proof that the Arroyos have an interest in the Lopez-owned power utility firm, Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop Oscar Cruz said yesterday.

"Malacañang has long wanted to put Meralco under its control through the GSIS… It is not a secret that the government has long disliked the Lopezes as they do not want to bow to the designs of the Malacañang occupant," said Cruz, a vocal critic of President Arroyo.

The state pension fund, Social Security System (SSS), Land Bank of the Philippines (LBP), Home Development Mutual Fund (HDMF) and the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PHIC) own about 30 percent of Meralco’s shares compared to the 33 percent of the Lopezes.

Cruz said what Santos did "was censurable though understandable because he is connected with the GSIS, although his position was given care of FG. Plus, he is said to be getting P500,000 a month plus other perks."

On Wednesday, Santos admitted that he called up Sabio, brother of Appellate Justice Jose Sabio Jr., the presiding judge in the GSIS-Meralco case, last May 30, but denied the call was meant to influence the court.

"Humihingi lang tayo ng tulong kung maaari, kung naaayon sa batas, tulungan ang aming presidente, GM Winston Garcia, sa kanyang campaign na ito na bigyan ng katarungan ang ating mga kawawang kababayan sa mga patakarang ginagawa ng Meralco," Santos said

Santos is a trustee of the GSIS and chair and legal counsel of the Confederation of Government Employees Organization (Cogeo) which he says has at least a million members.

Santos also said the presidential spouse was not aware of his phone call to Sabio.

Santos said he ceased to be Mike Arroyo’s spokesman last year.

Rep. Eduardo Gullas (Cebu, First District) said Meralco is rewarding shareholders P560.12 million in cash dividends, ahead of a planned refund of customer meter deposits.

Citing a regulatory filing by Meralco, Gullas said 11-member board of directors declared on Aug. 26 a cash dividend at the rate of P0.5025 per share.

The dividend is payable to shareholders on Oct. 21, a month before Meralco’s previously announced P2.8-billion refund of customer meter deposits, he said.

"Meralco should have repaid the meter deposits of its customers first, before handing out the cash bonuses to shareholders. This would have been the fair and compassionate thing to do — for the firm to extend relief to customers first, before fattening the pockets of shareholders," he said.

Gullas said the P560.12 million is based on the company’s 1,114,678,709 common shares outstanding.

He added the amount is on top of the P557.39 million in cash dividends that Meralco distributed to shareholders on May 13, at a rate of P0.50 per share.

Among the entities that would gain from the dividends are First Philippine Union Fenosa Inc. and First Philippine Holdings Corp. – two Lopez family-controlled firms that together own 33.38 percent of Meralco.

The two firms hold a combined 372,175,706 shares in Meralco, implying they would get a total of P187 million in dividends in October, at P0.5025 per share.

The dividend beneficiaries also include GSIS, SSS, LBP, HDMF and the PHIC which together, own 30 percent of Meralco’s shares.

Meralco reported a net profit of P2.48 billion in the first half of 2008, up 5.8 percent from the P2.34 billion posted in the same period in 2007. This, despite the 13.6 percent drop in the firm’s gross revenues, from P107.39 billion in the first semester of 2007 to P92.75 billion in the same period this year.

The electric utility earlier announced that it would reimburse customers P1.51 billion in meter deposits. Including interest of six to 10 percent per annum, the total refund would amount to P2.8 billion.