The National Electrification Administration (NEA), the supervisory arm of the government over all electric cooperatives in the country, was urged to plug the leadership impasse plaguing the Benguet Electric Cooperative (Beneco) for more than a year now.
Sagip partylist Rep. Dante Marcoleta during the House Energy Committee meeting earlier this week pushed NEA to deal with the Beneco leadership row hounding the cooperative since August last year even after the agency installed lawyer Marie Rafael as general manager.
NEA however was defied by a faction of the Beneco led by erstwhile assistant general manager Engr. Melchor Licoben.
Marcoleta earlier sought the House Committee on Energy to examine why there is a lingering leadership row at Beneco and also sought the House to look into alleged anomalies at the electric cooperative.
The lawmaker, during Monday’s House Committee hearing where NEA representatives as well as both Beneco faction’s representatives including Rafael and Licoben, said he was bothered by how the leadership row has been dragging on for long while getting affirmative replies from the electric cooperative supervisory body that indeed it installed Rafael.
But lawyer Vic Alvaro, NEA Legal Services Office Department Manager, speaking in behalf of newly designated NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda assured the House Energy Committee and Rep. Marcoleta to plug the Beneco leadership row as soon. “In fact, he just ordered a financial management audit on Beneco and he is waiting on our auditors to wrap up their present assignment in the electric cooperatives and he will set an audit to Beneco the soonest if not between this month.”
An earlier NEA audit cited various stark observations on fund misuse at Beneco including some fund misappropriations approved by the cooperative’s Board of Directors prompting their recent 6-month suspension including Licoben and other management-level officials.
Last Monday’s Energy Committee hearing, a continuation of the legislative body’s probe on alleged anomalies at the electric cooperative, was also attended by Isabela lawmaker Inno Dy who thanked the NEA for acting on the alleged corruption at the Isabela Electric Cooperative (Iselco) and has manifested support on the initiatives by Rep. Marcoleta in improving the services of electric cooperatives in the country.
Image credits: Nonie Reyes