MANILA -- “Justice for consumers.”
This was the battle-cry of several non-government organizations who on Saturday again vowed to file a class action suit against the Lopez-controlled Manila Electric Co. for its allegedly onerous power rates.
In a press conference in Mandaluyong City, representatives of around 30 NGOs, including the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC), Philippine Federation of Electric Cooperative, Luntiang Pangarap and Bantay Bayan Foundation Inc., demanded quick respite against what they deemed “unjustly imposed and oppressively collected electric rates” under guises such as “system loss,” generation charges, transmission charges, metering charges and universal charges.
The groups, under the umbrella organization Refund Energy Fees Unjustly Debited (REFUND Movement), said it will file a class suit against Meralco before the Energy Regulatory Commission within a fortnight to accommodate other organizations that have indicated their intention to join the case.
In a manifesto read at the news conference, REFUND members urged a full accounting of Meralco’s charges and an immediate refund of the “unjust” charges.
In particular, the group demanded a full accounting of money collected by Meralco under "system loss" and various other charges, the immediate issuance by the ERC of an order ending the collection of "system loss" and other unjust charges, and a full and speedy refund of the payments made by customers for such charges.
REFUND hit the alleged preferential treatment Meralco gives to other Lopez companies and the company’s reported practice of passing on its losses and office expenses to the consumers.
In last week’s Senate hearing, Meralco executives admitted that the company passed on to the public its own electricity bills amounting to P427.5 million annually. The company said it was part of the system loss that Meralco was allowed to charge and is supported by law.
“Just for the first quarter of 2008, Meralco gained a net profit of P655 million. Yet, Meralco makes all their consuming public pay for Meralco offices’ unlimited consumption of electricity amounting to hundreds of millions of pesos. Meralco keeps the profits and makes us pay for its losses. What could be more outrageous than this?” REFUND said.
Aside from Meralco, government agencies involved in power also earned the ire of the group.
REFUND Movement hit the debt-laden National Power Corp. for its “continued inefficiency and dubious loans and contracts,” which the public shoulders, and demanded that it, too, be investigated.
The group also slammed the Energy Regulatory Commission, saying it failed to protect consumers from Meralco’s dubious rates and promote market competition as mandated by the Electric and Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA).
The group opposed a government takeover of Meralco. The key for a well-governed Meralco, REFUND Movement said, was to have significant consumer representation in the country’s largest electricity distributor.
Dante Jimenez, VACC chairman, said REFUND will not only file a civil case against the company, it will also file a criminal charge of large-scale estafa against Meralco for allegedly overcharging consumers and for the slow release of the P30 billion refund ordered by the Supreme Court in a previous case.
Aside from these two legal remedies, Jimenez said REFUND Movement is eyeing the possibility of urging the public not to pay their Meralco bills, considering that the company has yet to complete its P30-billion refund.
“They should stop fooling the people. This is the start of something that will unite the people, especially in Metro Manila,” he said.
After Meralco, REFUND Movement said it will focus on running after electricity distributors in the provinces who overcharge their clients as well, Jimenez said.
