End to power pilferage a must

By Herbert Vego 

 

COULD a married couple also double as partners in crime?

Yes, as in the case of spouses Lito and Nory (surname withheld) who were caught on Thursday night in the act of tapping electricity from a transformer to their house at barangay So-oc, Arevalo, Iloilo City.

The couple had been under surveillance by prowling MORE Electric and Power Corp (MORE Power) personnel who had been tipped off of their nightly activity.

If we got it right from MORE Power’s information officer Jonathan Cabrera, the company would file charges against the two, who would then have to post bail for their temporary liberty.

So far, six respondents have already been charged in court with power pilferage in accordance with RA 7832. Under that law, the crime is punishable by reclusion temporal (imprisonment of 12 years and 1 day to 20 years) or a fine ranging from P50,000 to P100,000, or both.

A bigger discovery on Tuesday had preceded the above catch by the men of Jose Ariel “Aye” Castañeda, head of MORE Power’s apprehension team, Task Force Valeria. By tracing the long cable connected to a transformer, they found insulated wires crawling on the roof of a warehouse, spilling down to the homes of more than a hundred families.

Alas, nobody would identify the culprit behind the illegal connections. But the evidence corroborates the old rumor that a feared syndicate has been selling stolen electricity at “lower cost”.

So far, MORE Power has dismantled almost 5,000 jumpers – still way below the estimated 30,000 number of illegal connections all over 180 barangays.

This is alarming because that number represents one-third of power consumers. They should be “legalized” and added to the 65,000 paying customers for their own protection.

Why did the former distribution utility – Panay Electric Co. (PECO) –  play either ignorant or tolerant of the syndicate’s or syndicates’ modus operandi?

It’s because the stolen power goes to the so-called systems loss – meaning, charged equitably to paying customers.

However, considering that the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) only allows a maximum systems loss of 6.50%, how could PECO have been so foolish as to shoulder the excess?

Simply by diverting the excess systems loss to some unlucky souls’ bills! They were charged an amount three to ten times higher than their usual monthly bills. Naturally, the “victims” would complain, only to be asked to “just pay the bill on installment.”

To refuse was to end up “disconnected”.

PECO, as the respondent of a P630-million class suit for overbilling was ordered by the ERC in 2009 to refund the claimants of the said amount. The order must have fallen on deaf ears.

In the following years, more customers came out with the same problem that was aired on radio and TV and was brought to the attention of the House’s legislative franchise committee, which junked its application for renewal of franchise and awarded it to the new applicant instead.

MORE Power’s entry as the new power distributor in Iloilo City on February 29 this year by virtue of a court order was somehow “inopportune” because of the already creeping coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in that month.

To Mayor Jerry P. Treñas, however, MORE Power has become a valuable partner in dealing with the problem during the first month of the imposition of community quarantine. The company donated to the city almost P1 million worth of facemasks, alcohol, hand sanitizers and acetate.

Today, it also helps City Hall clean and beautify the environment, starting with Plaza Libertad.

In the words of MORE Power president Roel Z. Castro, “We are one with the city government and other stakeholders in this fight against an enemy we cannot see.”

Batò, Iloilo!

-oOo-

Was the whistleblower correct in pinpointing Health Secretary Francisco Duque III as the “godfather” behind the P15-billion fraud at the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth)?

Duque’s defenders may be right in assuming “sour-graping” on the part of  Philhealth’s former anti-fraud officer, lawyer Thorrsson Montes Keith, who had allegedly been denied his wish for a higher-paid position. But that does not mean he was lying. Documentary evidence would eventually sustain his position.

The plain truth is that Duque has firmly hung on to different “moneygeable” (pun intended) positions since the time of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

As long as Duterte is in power, the Senate investigation would be nothing more than moro-moro. Remember when Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra threatened to throw the book at Duque?

Guevarra cooled off after President Duterte defended Duque, saying in mixed English and Cebuano, “I place my reputation sa kang Secretary Duque nga wala’y kawat nga nahimo na. Dili na niya kaya. Dili na kaya kay datu ra kaayo daan si Duque. Naa ni hospital, naa ni eskwelahan, naa ni tanan. Hastang tanang gwapang asawa, naa niya. Mao man na’y importante.”

Unless he is as close to the powerful one as Duque, PhilHealth President and Chief Executive Officer Ricardo Morales might play scapegoat, absorbing all the shocks in the end.

-oOo-

Congratulations to our entrepreneur friend Victor F. Nomat of San Jose, Antique for opening a new hotel despite the COVID-19 crisis. It’s the Golden Travellers Inn, which is famous for its accommodation services, including massage for its weary travelers.

It is the place where Mayor Christopher Piccio of Belison books some of the homecoming seamen and other quarantined visitors.  So far, none has tested positive for COVID-19.

For reservation, please call cell phone 09171551545.