|
As we write this column, President Arroyo is set to
meet with Mr. Manolo Lopez, chairman of Meralco, and maybe Mr. Oscar
Lopez, too, the patriarch of the family that controls Meralco. This
is an extraordinary meeting, involving the head of the Republic and
one of the political families in the country.
We hope the Panglao conference
will end the imbroglio over electricity prices and start amicable
relations. We dread to think that the relationship between the
government and the Lopezes today will approximate its pre-martial
law precedent.
I am no longer sure who started
the fight which has now involved the use of advertisements. As we
mull over the events of the past two weeks, the problem seemed to
have begun with an innocuous statement of the President about the
need to lower electricity prices. But now, the issue has become
political, with the spread of slogans like “Ibaba ang kuryente,
suportahan ang Presidente.”
Of course, as sovereign, she
could not be faulted when she responds to popular demands to lower
electricity and energy cost. She had opted to ask entrepreneurs to
contribute collectively to lower energy cost—specially since the
commodity is becoming too expensive.
But succeeding reportage has
brought collateral damage to the Lopez family, the owners of Meralco.
The media blitz against the Lopezes seems to have succeeded,
specially that part where the firm was alleged to have passed on
unverified costs to consumers.
That is happening despite their
ownership of a radio and TV network whose presence could have made
the difference in the media war. But the Lopezes have opted to wage
a gentleman’s war that does not repeat the activist role of the
ABS-CBN in pre-martial law days.
Besides the populist agenda of
the President to decrease the prices of oil and electricity, we must
try to understand that some vested interests are salivating to take
control of Meralco. Could the Aboitiz family, backed by allied
interests based in Luzon, be interested in getting Meralco from the
Lopezes?
And on this point, it is
necessary to determine the intentions of Mr. Winston Garcia, the
president and general manager of the Government Service and
Insurance System (GSIS), who sits in the Meralco board. Mr. Garcia
seems to be the vanguard in the assault against Meralco. If Garcia
can show that his proposals on Meralco do not carry a hidden agenda,
then he deserves the accolade of the stockholders.
But if he is found to be fronting
for a family that is heavily involved in the power distribution in
Cebu and other parts of the south, then he should be censured by the
GSIS members. We do not wish to prejudge Mr. Garcia, but he should
come clean in the light of speculations that he is just using the
members of the GSIS to front for Cebu-based companies. A categorical
statement from him before the meeting that he is doing this
independently would be reassuring to everyone.
There is a proposal with
reference to the franchise area now being covered by Meralco. The
proposal, aired in kapihans and press releases, is for the franchise
area to be divided into two—one for Meralco and other for a still
unidentified franchise holder. Does this other franchise holder mean
the Aboitiz Family? This is a valid question, I think.
Brief notes
Mr. Hermogenes Esperon, the
former Chief of Staff of the AFP, was appointed on Sunday as peace
adviser of the President. The President’s aides believe that
oftentimes the best negotiator is somebody who comes from the
battlefield. They cite the example of former President Fidel V.
Ramos who has forged peace pacts with several insurgent groups. On
the other hand, the regime of Mrs. Corazon Aquino was a failure in
the peace process. Her attempt to create “peace zones” did not
move out of first base. When Mr. Jesus Dureza assumes his new post,
he would be both press secretary and spokesperson of the President.
I had a chance to meet Mr. Dureza in the 1992 peace negotiations
with the NDF in Amsterdam. He had a good grasp of issues in the
armistice . . . Congressman Eleandro Budooy Madrona is refilling his
bill to transform the Romblon State College into a university.
Madrona told me the other night that hs ie approaching Senator
Aquilino Pimentel for help when the bill goes to the Senate.
Madrona’s man argument is that as a poor province, Romblon needs a
university to equalize the development thrust of other provinces.
Right now, the Romblon school already serves portions of Panay and
Mindoro. . . .Norway is keen about restarting the peace negotiations
between the National Democratic Front and the government. Unlike its
previous posture, the NDF is now open to renewed talks . . .
Incidentally, the peace negotiations in the south is under review
because of the change in facilitator. Libya has replaced Malaysia as
the go-between. . . .
|
