Militant lawmakers to oppose Aquino emergency power proposal

Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Neri Colmenares. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – Representatives of a militant group opposed the emergency powers that would be given to President Benigno Aquino III to supposedly address the impending power crisis.

Bayan Muna Representatives Neri Colmenares and Carlos Zarate said in a statement Sunday that their group would oppose “this deceptive move” to address the “induced crisis” hitting the country’s power industry.

“Bayan Muna will oppose this deceptive move because it is baseless and has an evil agenda. It plays into the ploy of the power cartel to divert public attention from the real issue which is the unprecedented and illegal power rate hike imposed by the Manila Electric Cooperative (Meralco) and its cabal of suppliers,” Colmenares said.

Colmenares added that the current situation is similar to the time when former President Fidel V. Ramos was granted emergency powers, but instead allowed the entry of independent power producers (IPP) to construct power plants within a couple of years.

He said that Ramos approved supply contracts that guaranteed the government to buy IPP’s generated power and forced consumers to pay for unused electricity.

Zarate said that the proposal to give Aquino emergency powers would raise suspicions as Meralco and the power generators are threatening consumers with blackouts.

“We have to be watchful of the schemes and ploys of this power cartel as it appears that they will take advantage of the consumers by whatever means,” Zarate said.

He added that the situation of the power rate hikes is a ploy of the power producers to rake in more profits.

“Truth is there is no emergency situation. Meralco and the IPP’s colluded to create artificial power shortages through simultaneous power plant shutdowns,” Colmenares said. “The real problem is the greed for profits of these power generators and suppliers.”

The militant congressman said that Aquino should certify urgent bills to amend or repeal the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA).

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