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THEY do
business here, they invest here. They must then have
some voice on government policy. It’s not interference.
That, in
effect, is what the Makati Business Club (MBC) said in
apparent defense of foreign business groups in the
Philippines, whom senators rebuked for urging President
Arroyo to stop efforts to amend the Electric Power
Industry Reform Act (Epira).
What
they did was write President Arroyo asking that the
Epira be not touched yet, a reaction to a congressional
plan—pushed by the Executive— to amend the power-reform
law.
The MBC
also believes as much—that the Epira be allowed to come
to full fruition before tinkering with it—and this was
enunciated by Alberto Lim, MBC executive director, when
he said they are also asking that the power-reform law
be left untouched until it comes into full force.
He added
Congress’s initiative to amend the Epira is causing a
lot of anxiety in the business community—local and
foreign—because it is not clear what new provisions will
be added.
“Let’s
give the law a chance to become fully effective. We
don’t know what they will include in the amendments and
that is what we fear,” Lim told the press at the
sidelines of the joint general membership meeting of the
MBC and the Management Association of the Philippines.
He said,
“They are investing in the country. If they will not be
heard, they will not invest.” Lim added this is not the
way to treat the foreign chambers, especially now that
the Philippines is already receiving very little direct
investments from them.
Meanwhile, Power Sector Assets and Liabilities
Management Corp. president Jose Ibazeta committed that
the privatization process as mandated by the Epira will
no longer take too long to complete.
In a
recent congressional hearing, Ibazeta said the remaining
two requisites—the privatization of at least 70 percent
of the assets of National Power Corp. (Napocor) and 70
percent of Napocor-IPP contracts—would be achieved this
year. This means, apparently, that amending the Epira
becomes a back-burner issue.
Lim also
opposed plans to use the Epira in forcing contract
renegotiations with the independent power producers (IPPs).
“I don’t think we can use the law in
renegotiating....The investors will really lose the
appetite to invest here if we will do that.”
He
reiterated that foreign chambers have a right to express
their opinion on issues and vital legislation that
affect their investments in the country.
He said
what the senators did last Monday in criticizing the
foreign chambers during session “is not the attitude of
Filipinos.”
Rob
Sears, executive director of the American Chamber of
Commerce, said the Joint Foreign Chambers (JFC) will
continue to be transparent in its opinions on issues
affecting the business climate in the country.
Sears
added they will always be ready to face congressional
hearings, including the one to be conducted by the
Senate on Friday regarding the Epira. Officials of the
JFC were invited as resource persons.
The JFC
also said on Wednesday that Energy Secretary Angelo
Reyes urged their members to help government in
achieving efficient and affordable energy services.
Reyes
had also assured the JFC that his office will also look
into various subsidies that are currently applied by
neighboring countries, including other factors that
influence the rates.
Rick
Santos represents the American Chamber of Commerce in
the Joint Chamber, Richard Barclay for Australian-New
Zealand Chamber Stewart Hall for Canadians, Hubert D’
Aboville for the Europeans, Toshifuma Inami for the
Japanese, Jae Jang for the Korean chamber and Shameem
Qurashi for the Philippine Association of Multinational
Companies Regional Headquarters Inc. |
