Disappointing palay production. Two Quezon City residents head for home with their quota of cheap NFA rice.
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'Inutile' ERC slammed Regulatory body says it cannot
regulate selling prices of IPPs
BY WENDELL VIGILIA
THE Energy Regulatory Commission yesterday
said it is powerless when it comes to regulating the prices of
electricity sourced by Meralco from independent power producers
(IPPs).
During the House committee on energy hearing
on the high electricity rates, ERC executive director Francis
Juan said that while the commission can regulate the prices of
electricity Meralco buys from the National Power Corp. (Napocor),
it does not have the power to do same to IPPs because of
pre-existing contracts.
Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teodoro Casiño
said: "The impression that we got is that the ERC is
sunud-sunuran lang kung ano ang sabihin ng Meralco, sunud
sunuran lang kung ano sabihin ng Napocor."
WINSTON GARCIA, president and general manager
of the Government Service Insurance System, yesterday sought an
expanded probe into "sweetheart deals" between Manila Electric
Co (Meralco) and its sister companies, this time into alleged
discounts to the latter.
Garcia said the probe should look into the
tax payments made by Meralco over electricity it itself used and
electricity it sold to sister companies, among them the
broadcast giant ABS-CBN and telecom provider Bayantel.
"Preferential treatment and discounts that
may have been given to sister companies of Meralco, if true,
would translate to lost income for the company and Meralco
investors outside of the Lopez group," Garcia said.
THE Cayetano siblings have joined hands in
investigating alleged bribery by Hanjin Heavy Industries and
Construction Co Ltd. of South Korea to determine President
Arroyo's culpability.
"Parang this is the second time from the ZTE
(bribery scandal) na may nagsumbong kay Presidente at imbes na
pa-imbestigahan niya yung kompanya, e mas lalong napabilis ang
implementation," Blue Ribbon chair Alan Peter Cayetano said in
an interview.
Former Planning Secretary Romulo Neri had
informed the President about the P200 million offer of then
Comelec chair Benjamin Abalos in exchange for approving the
$329-million NBN-ZTE broadband project.
