ZAMBOANGA CITY – Three years after the head of the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative had been removed by the National Electrification Administration over anomalous transactions involving millions of pesos in funding, the cooperative is still struggling with its finances.
Engineer George Ledesma is the current General Manager of the electric cooperative, but despite the new leadership and reforms he reportedly introduced, the cooperative is presently in “financial constraints.”
Aside from the previous head, many of its former board directors were also removed by NEA and disqualified them from holding any position in rural electric cooperatives in the country. NEA’s decision was based on its investigations in 2011on the power firm after an independent group called Movement for Better ZAMCELCO accused the officials of purchasing of luxury cars, band equipment and sound system, among others despite its ballooning debts.
Past records showed that ZAMCELCO, through negotiated purchase, acquired a 10 MVA substation for P33 million while the 2010 NEA price index for it was only P24,468,449.57.
It also purchased 34 brand new KIA vehicles – 20 units in 2009 and another 14 units in 2010 – and ten of them were Sportage luxury vehicles, and was allegedly overpriced by over P5 million and the acquisition of a piece of land in Talon-Talon village for some P2,500 per square meter which was not in accordance with the current real estate price; acquisition from a local restaurant of used lighting and sound system, including a band equipment worth more P1 million, and several other questionable transactions.
Local business and civic groups, and politicians questioned the extravagant spending of the power firm despite its P1 billion debts then.
The power firm was also criticized after announcing that it would raise electric rates and pass on to consumers the millions of its unpaid taxes charged by the local government. Electric consumers have been complaining about the high cost of power rates and asked the NEA to investigate the purchases and other dealings of the cooperative.
Former cooperative officials accused of wrongdoings strongly denied all allegations against them and said all their transactions were legal and sanctioned by the NEA.
NEA had installed Engineer Jesus Castro as Project Supervisor to oversee the operation of the cooperative, but was also dragged into a controversy and eventually recalled. (Mindanao Examiner)
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