ILOILO City – MORE Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power) has been operating the power distribution system here since taking over Panay Electric Co.’s (PECO)’s substations Friday last week.
It dismissed claims that the Regional Trial Court (RTC), Branch 23 ordered it yesterday to stand down.
There was no order to return the power distribution operation to PECO, stressed Atty. Hector Teodosio, MORE Power legal counsel.
“The court simply said we respect the Addendum. Sa Addendum naghambal ang court nga ang operation ihatag sa PECO personnel, indi sa PECO management. There is a difference between PECO personnel and PECO management,” stressed Teodosio.
RTC Branch 23 heard yesterday PECO’s Motion for Clarification on the Feb. 20 Writ of Possession (WOP) which the former issued in line with the expropriation case MORE Power filed against PECO.
In an order afterwards, Presiding Judge Emerald Requina-Contreras ordered both parties “to respect the Addendum to the WOP pending the court’s verification of the status of MORE Power’s and PECO’s Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity (CPCN) or until March 26, 2020.”
Contreras came up with the order “due to the parties’ failure to come up with an agreement and to satisfy the apprehension of the court, that led the court to issue the Addendum.”
What was stated in the Addendum?
It contained guidelines on how to go about enforcing the Writ of Possession to ensure the continuous supply of electricity in Iloilo City. These were:
* serve the writ in a peaceful manner
* install MORE Power which may deploy its personnel to man and oversee the substations to exercise its possession and control of the distribution facilities, but the operation should still be handled by PECO personnel who has the technical expertise
* maintain the status quo of the operation so as to give time for MORE Power to orient / train / immerse its personnel before it fully takes control of the operation
* see to it that no PECO personnel in the rank and file would be displaced during the transition period
As part of the addendum, the court also ordered MORE Power and PECO to submit their respective proposals as to their timelines on the following matters:
* transition period
* accounting
* turnover of records like the list of consumers
* documents relevant to the operation of the distribution system, among others
* inventory of personal properties under Category A
* inventory of real properties already under the possession of MORE Power
In order yesterday, Contreras set further hearing of the expropriation case on March 26, 8:30 a.m.
“Nagpapasalamat kami sa korte sa paglilinaw na dapat talaga ang may hawak pa ng operasyon ng electric distribution facility ay PECO. Nakita naman natin in the course of the hearing kung paano paulit-ulit subukang suwayin ng MORE Power ang nasabing direktiba ng korte,” said Atty. Estrella Elamparo, PECO legal counsel.
But Teodosio disagreed.
“Ginsunod sang MORE Power ang Addendum. Pareho man gihapon nga mga personnel ang naga-duty sa substations halin sang Feb 28. Pero nag-transfer na ang ini nga mga personnel sang employment sa MORE Power, kag ini man ang ginamandu sang MORE franchise law kag ni Judge,” said Teodosio.
Therefore, he stressed, the status quo in the operation of the power distribution system remains.
“MORE Power remains in full control,” said Teodosio.
Any move of PECO to take over the power distribution facilities will be resisted, he added./PN
