EPIRA cohorts - economic saboteurs

INFOWARS
Herman Tiu Laurel
5/12/2008



Power crocodiles on GMA’s side call the Lopezes power sharks. GMA’s economic adviser Joey Salceda point to the IPPs (international power pirates), and Chiz Escudero says it’s the RVAT on “systems loss” while the Lopezes says it’s the tax on Malampaya gas, Mikey Arroyo and Juan Ponce Enrile says it’s the lack of “open access” to entice other “players” (i.e. other power pirates) to partake of the PPA plunder. There are countless opinions and propositions on the burning issue of high Philippine electricity cost and the role of Meralco, the IPPs and the GMA regime in the power price crisis. They’re all quacks harping on symptoms rather than the cancer at the root – the EPIRA privatization and deregulation of power.

Before the EPIRA privatization, electricity generation and distribution was still in principle a government service to empower the nation and the people to pursue modern conveniences, productivity and national development. Whatever sins of the government run power industry and the NPC since its establishment in 1936, causing power rates to be the highest in Asia was never one of them. The Philippines waited for the EPIRA’s privatization from Edsa Dos to earn that distinction of having the “highest power cost in Asia”.

Privatization and deregulation in the world started in the late 80s with Tatcherite and Reaganite economics revolution in the U.K. and the U.S. Neo-conservatives and Big Business began funding academes and politicians to ram through power privatization and deregulation laws, mainstream media to demonize state and public power utilities, and banking institutions followed suit with debt-for-privatization schemes. The IMF-WB-ADB started tying loan packages to Third World country to power privatization and deregulation, which led many Third World countries into that trap. South America was particularly targeted by U.S. companies using corrupt and surrogate governments in the 90s in Argentina, Brazil, Venezuela and others to privatize state energy firms.

In Asia, the State of Maharastra, India, in 1996 allowed Enron set up a power plant and within a year power rates shot up prompting massive demonstrations that eventually led to its closure. Indonesia under the dictator Suharto was a compliant leader and accepted privatization of many public energy companies, but the high prices put the foreign IPPs at odds with Indonesians which led to contentious cases filed in the international courts. When Suharto fell many of the IPPs in Indonesia were renegotiated. In South American many countries are currently reversing and re-nationalizing the privatization and deregulation of the last decade, under the new, patriotic or nationalist governments of Krichner, Lula and Chavez.

In 2001 Philippine newspapers cited the real reason for the fast tracking of the EPIRA by the GMA regime. In the i-Report of the PCIJ, which is just one among dozens one could quickly pick up on the Internet, this headline ran: “Short-circuited Reforms in the Power Sector - EPIRA’s passage in 2001, in fact, was a condition for the release of much-needed loans from the ADB and Japan Export-Import Bank amounting to $950 million. ...” The reforms deformed the power sector, but Gloria Arroyo couldn’t wait and got the Lopezes to bankroll the payola (distributed by then Speaker Sony Belmonte) to congressmen of the lame duck Congress to railroad the EPIRA. Arroyo also got then NEA (National Electrification Administration) chief Noel Sanchez to release P 10-M per congressmen for power projects.

EPIRA’s power rates practically doubled but it was kept under wraps for a year as Gloria ordered Napocor to hold the rate increase in abeyance. Due to mounting debts NPC was forced to raise rates a year later, then the nation learned of the evil PPA and IPPs. Such bitter experiences is not limited to us, Americans were even worse hit by sudden increases in power rates after privatization and deregulation – culminating in the $ 50-B Enron swindle of California. One website in the U.S I recommend to our readers to visit is Common Dreams, which published one report published by Public Citizen entitled: “It’s Greed Stupid! Debunking the Ten Myths of Utility Deregulation”, by Wenonah Hauter and Tyson Slocum”. In Myth # 2 that deregulation will lower costs for consumers, it said:

“Deregulation has been sold to the public as a way to lower prices. Unfortunately, the inverse is often true… Now, as wholesale prices have skyrocketed since last year (2001), proponents argue that consumer rates will have to increase to encourage more competition.” When deregulation is under fire: “Myth # 1: Deregulation does not work because California did not deregulate enough.’ … Advocates for deregulation say that if … consumers paid for the real cost of electricity through a free market, there would not be a problem. But they fail to mention that … the cost of wholesale electricity has at times been almost 4,000 percent higher than before deregulation because … of the profiteering on electricity trading at the Power Exchange.“ California’s Power Exchange is the WESM here, and like in California the buyers and sellers manipulate the market to maximize profit.

GMA, Garcia, the Lopezes, WESM directors, senators and congressmen – they are all to blame. Economic saboteurs and traitors all! : The Lopezes did not pay for Meralco, it’s the power consumers who did. Consumers are not obliged to respect Cory Aquino’s crony franchise to the Lopezes to profit from our electricity payments. It was anomalous from the start, to give the minority Lopezes the right to manage the public firm and supply it power and equipment through Lopez subsidiaries. GMA (and FVR) is worse, selling out national interest to the IPPs, destroying the national economy and impoverishing millions of Filipinos. Legislator sold out for a few pieces of silver from the ADB and other multi-lateral financial agencies; and mainstream media kept the public befuddled by abdicating its duty to help the public piece the puzzle into one intelligible issue: privatization of public utilities is plunder.

To solve the power price crisis: junk EPIRA and restore electricity as a public utility; confiscate and nationalize Meralco; re-nationalize all IPPs; appoint credible officials to the regulatory agencies with the mandate to align rates with the regional average. Privatization for profit is no option at all. Nasecore’s Pete Ilagan is calling for “cooperativization” which is really taking private corporations out and restoring power to the public. Government corruption is cited for opposition to nationalization, but experience with cooperatives raise the same problem – unreliable coop leaders; but profit seeking corporations are the worst. The solution is good men to provide good government, but our present political system can’t make this happen. – Back to the Revolution.

(Tune in to 1098AM, “Kape’t Kamulatan, Kabansa” 8:30-9am, Monday to Friday)