TRO lifted but Ceneco still defers July 1-2 plebiscite

By Dolly Yasa

BACOLOD City – The Regional Trial Court here lifted the 72-hour temporary restraining order (TRO) it imposed on the ongoing plebiscite on the Joint Venture Agreement (JVA) between Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) and a private firm.

But Ceneco general manager Atty. Arnel Lapore said that the plebiscite scheduled this weekend, July 1 and 2, 2023, will still be deferred.

RTC Branch 42 Judge Maria Lina P. Gonzaga issued the TRO on Thursday as part of the hearing on the petition filed by JVA oppositors.

The anti-JVA group asked the court to nullify the JVA signed by Ceneco and Primelectric Holdings Inc. last June 3, 2023, in Bacolod City.

Under the agreement, Primelectric, through its subsidiary Negros Electric and Power Corp. (NEPC), will buy Ceneco’s assets and upgrade its distribution system.

The group initially asked for a TRO while the petition is being heard, but the RTC denied it after the petitioners failed to inform Ceneco and Primelectric of the case before it was raffled.

The petitioners then filed a motion for reconsideration and the court granted the 72-hour TRO effective Thursday.

Among the issues raised by the anti-JVA group is the alleged lack of massive information, education, and communication (IEC) campaigns on the joint venture.

The RTC recognized this point and ordered the parties involved “to submit their respective evidence on the compliance to the legal requirements of massive information education and communication (IEC) campaign in the district levels within the electric cooperatives’ coverage area.”

But on Friday, Judge Gonzaga lifted the TRO after noting that Ceneco and Primelectric/NEPC were able to submit documents proving that the JVA was discussed in various media outlets here.

In a press conference before the TRO was lifted, Lapore decided to postpone the plebiscite on Saturday and Sunday even if the order only covered July 1.

But he stressed that the plebiscite on July 8-9, 2023 will push through. He also clarified that the TRO is just on the plebiscite, not the JVA.

Lapore said massive IEC campaigns on the JVA were conducted before it was signed by both parties.

The first round of the plebiscite was held on June 24 and 25 with 27,741 Ceneco member-consumers casting their ballots.

Based on data from the overall plebiscite committee, 21,674 voted yes for the JVA while 6,067 voted against the agreement JVA.

With 192,188 member-consumers considered eligible voters, the voting turnout for the first two days of polling was 14.4 percent.

Primelectric led by billionaire Enrique Razon is the umbrella company of Negros Electric and Power Corp. (NEPC), which will acquire and take over Ceneco assets if consumers ratify the JVA.

NEPC is a sister of MORE Power, the power distributor in Iloilo City.