A partylist representative is asking the Marcos administration if the power sector has been promised to the Razons.
House Deputy Minority leader and Alliance of Concerned Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro said, in a press release Saturday, June 10, that more and more power assets are being gobbled up by the Razons.
“First was the Malampaya gas field that was supposedly already spent but whose contract was renewed for the Razons. Second, there are talks that they are also trying to get into the transmission aspect of the power sector,” she said.
Aside from MORE Electric and Power Corporation in Iloilo City now the Razons are trying to take over the Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO) through a joint venture deal, Castro said.
“They seem to be wasting no time to expand their dominance on the energy sector because they have a very powerful backer,” the teacher solon said.
The Makabayan bloc last month filed House Resolution 955 urging the House of Representatives through its Committee on Cooperatives Development, to investigate, in aid of legislation, the impending privatization of CENECO through a joint venture agreement with Ignite Power and Energy Holdings Inc. owned by the Razons, she pointed out.
“Electric power along with other strategic industries like water, transportation, oil and communication should not be left to the private sector alone because all it wants is profit. The government should also be in these industries to ensure that the interest of consumers come first and not that of corporate oligarchs,” Castro said.*