“DON’T you ever give up?”
Thus asked the stronger character in a martial arts movie where his bloodied enemy was struggling to stand up.
That scene leaps back to life in my viewfinder, seeing the temerity of Panay Electric Co. (PECO) to regain “power” despite the expiration of its franchise to distribute electricity in Iloilo City on Jan. 18, 2019.
Why could not PECO give up? There is a law (RA 11212) granting MORE Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power) the franchise to “establish, operate, and maintain, for commercial purposes and in the public interest, a distribution system for the conveyance of electric power to end users in Iloilo City.”
PECO still operates on the strength of a temporary certificate of public convenience and necessity (CPCN) issued by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) in recognition of a PECO-to-MORE transition period covering two years of less.
Lest the Ilonggos forget, an earlier bill (House Bill 6023) for renewal of PECO’s franchise filed by Rep. Jesus Romualdo in 2017 failed to pass in the wake of mounting complaints by disgruntled power consumers over overbillings, unbridled line disconnections, non-refund of bill deposits, poor public relations and hazardous power lines likened to spaghetting pataas at pababa.
I would like to reiterate that two provisions of the law specifically relay the power baton from the old franchisee to the new one. Section 10 provides that “the grantee is authorized to exercise the power of eminent domain in so far as it may be reasonably necessary for the efficient establishment, improvement, upgrading, rehabilitation, maintenance and operation of its services.”
Section 17 authorizes PECO “to operate the existing distribution system within the franchise area until the acquisition by the grantee of its distribution system.”
Instead of complying, PECO called the law “unconstitutional” and sought legal relief before a far-away regional trial court (RTC) in Mandaluyong City.
Why not just do away with legal arguments for or against the questioned law meanwhile? It is not disputed that a law is “the law” unless declared by the Supreme Court “unconstitutional.” The conflict of the two companies could have been avoided by respecting that dictum.
The second attempt of PECO to apply for a “renewal” of franchise does not make sense, since the first attempt had already been junked by the House Committee on Legislative Franchises. It does not augur well for one of its officers to vow never to give up its power distribution system. They could not even attempt to “coexist” because under Republic Act No. 9136 or “Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA),” only one power utility may serve a territory through a legislative franchise.
Rep. Julienne “Jam-jam” Baronda, speaking in support of MORE Power, could not have been more eloquent when she told the committee, of which she is a member, “If we grant PECO’s franchise application now, it is my humble belief that we will only create more issues, court more litigations, and produce more problems. We will never see the end of it. And that is against public interest. That is not for the benefit and welfare of the people of Iloilo City, which I represent.”
Electricity is as much a public utility as roads that may be widened through expropriation of private property when the interest of the community calls for it. But expropriation is not without due process.
In this urgent case that awaits the Court’s service of a writ of possession, MORE Power is prepared to pay PECO a “just compensation” of P481,842,450 based on its declared assets. (hvego31@gmail.com/PN)
