“If the assets were sold but the money did not go to paying off the NPC’s debts, where could they have gone?”
by Ducky Paredes
Eastern Samar Rep. Ben Evardone is doing a good job in trying to get to the bottom of why our power rates are so high. As he explains, the Epira Law gave the go-signal to the National Power Corporation to sell its assets so that Napocor would pay off its loans that were causing the high power rates.
Ben says that the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM), which the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (Epira) of 2001 created to sell Napocor, has already sold 91.8 percent of the power firm’s assets.
“A total of $10.6 billion was generated from the proceeds of privatization. This amount includes $3.394 billion from the sale of 25 generating plants and $3.950 billion for the concession for its transmission facilities,” he said.
PSALM also took out $2.8 billion in new loans.
Ben Evardone wants to know: “PSALM has generated $10.6 billion from privatization and $2.8 billion in new loans for a total of $13.4 billion, but it has paid only $1.3 billion of Napocor’s indebtedness. Where did the $12.1 billion go?”
Apparently, the NPC is not talking.
Says the congressman: “They have refused to tell the ERC where the privatization and loan proceeds went, supposedly because this information is confidential. I think that disclosing this information could lead to a lot of irregularities being exposed.”
This is something that needs to be looked into. If the assets were sold but the money did not go to paying off the NPC’s debts, where could they have gone? Weren’t there any provisions in the Epira law that made sure that the money raised would go towards extinguishing the NPC’s debts? Why are the debts still unpaid even as most of the assets have already been sold?
In 2001, when Epira was enacted, Napocor’s debts stood at $9.3 billion.
Explains Evardone” “Under Epira, taxpayers, through the national government, immediately absorbed P200 billion or about $4 billion of those debts, leaving a balance of $5.3 billion.”
Evardone explains that if PSALM paid the balance of Napocor’s indebtedness using the $10.6 billion generated from the sale of its assets, the government would still be left with a surplus of $5.3 billion.
Ben continues: “But there is no surplus. They even contracted new loans. To make things worse, they want consumers to pay more than P500 billion over 17 years for so-called stranded debts of Napocor and independent power producers.
“I think our people will not accept new rounds of increases in electricity rates unless they are informed of and satisfied with where billions of dollars in privatization proceeds and new loans went.”
What we know is that the NPC retired all of its officials and rehired all of them the very next day. Did all that money from the sale of its assets go to the NPC officers? So, why is no one but Evardone looking into this?
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What is Rear Admiral Feliciano Angue complaining about? Gloria Arroyo appointed him to the post of Commander of the National Capital Region Command, a posting that requires the rank of a three-star general, while Angue’s rank was the equivalent only of a one-star general. While in that post, he was promoted to the equivalent rank of a two-star general. Now that he is given a post that is right for his present rank, he complains?
Those who say that Angue should not be ignored and that his complaints should be looked into must want our military to get even more spoiled than it already is. Angue belonged to the class that adopted the former President, which could be the main reason why he was favored and spoiled rotten by her.
The AFP should investigate him for his behavior. In fact, why even give him any assignment at all?
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It seems that every once in a while, the topic of when school should start comes up again. Didn’t we talk about that ten years ago and five years ago and, maybe, even just two years ago? Why can’t we decide on this once and for all and put closure on this topic? Can we have a final discussion on it and never bring it up again. There must be more important matters to discuss other than when to start the school year!
Heck, does it even matter? Other countries start their school year in January or May or September. In our case, the truth is that no matter when the school year begins, because it takes up ten months of the year’s twelve, we will have typhoons during the school year. There is no avoiding the typhoon season, which has no real reliable schedule. In fact, the important part of education is not when the school year begins and ends but what is taught and how this is taught.
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We have a letter from a long time reader and old, old friend: “I am still alive. I was in Manila for three months. I stayed at Rockwell Hoya condo in Makati. I didn’t vote as I transferred to Mindoro.
“ Anyway, I am fine. Back in Mindoro for a month now. I read no papers. Only in the Internet. Sometimes, I can’t get you at the Malaya. When I was at Rockwell, I had the laptop of my niece but sometimes I hardly knew the mechanics. I met some people at Rockwell at the elevators like Neri, Carangdang, Ces Drilon, Karen Davila at the Mall and some movie stars. I was able to talk to Neri.
“So far so good Noynoy’s’ work except Kris who is always on TV.” — Nay Trining (Mrs. Trinidad Gomez)
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Excerpts from the privilege speech of Senator Jinggoy Estrada: “I have no doubt that President Aquino had nothing but the noblest motive in mind when he first thought of naming Mr. Davide to that position. Obviously, the President was acting in the honest belief that he was choosing an eminently qualified man for that all-important post.”
“To you who will be listening to my speech with prejudice I say this: if you cannot listen with open hearts, at least listen with open minds. For sometimes it is the most esteemed men who act as if they were above the law, as Davide has.”
“Davide participated in the conspiracy of EDSA Dos when he accepted then vice president Gloria Arroyo’s letter to administer her oath of office as president of the Philippines even if he knew that the letter was based on the misrepresentation, the lie that President Estrada was permanently incapacitated – even if he was not.”
“The irony of Davide as head of the Truth Commission is not only obvious, it is glaring. With Davide as head of the Truth Commission against Arroyo, we might as well ask Benjamin Abalos to investigate the NBN-ZTE deal or have Jocjoc Bolante investigate the fertilizer fund scam or even ask Virgilio Garcillano to investigate the ‘Hello, Garci’ scandal.”
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hvp 08.18.10
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