PERRYSCOPE

All in the Family
BY PERRY DIAZ

SAN FERNANDO, Pampanga -- In an age where just about everything is powered by electrical energy, it is no wonder that the stage has been set for total -- or perhaps absolute -- control of the Philippines' energy industry. The ongoing battle for control of Meralco -- the country's largest distributor of electric power -- is just the tip of the iceberg. So far the Lopez clan has managed to maintain control of Meralco. The question is: how long can they remain in charge?

The Lopez's control of Meralco has made them one of the most politically powerful families in the nation. It's not surprising then that the Arroyo administration is determined to wrest control of Meralco through GSIS President Winston Garcia.

One government agency that plays a pivotal role in the energy "power" play is the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). It's official mission is to "promote and protect long-term consumer interests in terms of quality, reliability and reasonable pricing of a sustainable supply of electricity." It's objectives are:

1) To promulgate/approve rules, regulations, guidelines and policies;
2) To enforce rules, regulations including issuance of permits and licenses;
3) To resolve cases (rates and other cases) and disputes;
4) To promote consumer interest; and
5) To become a dynamic organization of professional people with the highest degree of technical competence and integrity. With these objectives, whoever is appointed head of the commission would wield immense power in the fast-growing -- and very profitable -- energy industry.

With the spiraling rates of electricity, public distrust of the government has increased tremendously. A recent poll conducted by IBON Foundation showed that seven out of 10 Filipinos have trouble paying for their electric bills. However, the government has been blaming Meralco for the high rates which was the basis for the aborted takeover by the government. But one of the major reasons why Meralco rates have been going up is because of state-owned Napocor's alleged overpricing schemes.

Not too long ago, Napocor -- the country's largest provider and generator of electric power -- awarded two coal supply contracts totaling P1.27 billion to Transpacific Consolidated Resources Inc. (TCRI), a very small company with a paid-up capital of only P62,500. According to a news report, Napocor invited TCRI to bid a coal supply contract worth P319 million. TCRI was awarded the contract. Two weeks later, TCRI was awarded another contract for a whopping P956-million. Although, Napocor claimed that the first contract was awarded through competitive bidding, it's not clear if the second -- and larger -- contract was awarded in the same manner as the first.

TCRI was incorporated in Cebu on October 25, 2007 using an address at the business center of Danara Hotel, a small hotel in Quezon City. The incorporators were Leslie Ducut, Ressie Ducut, Lilia Yolanda Tuadles, Wilfredo Tuadles and Lorna Arceo. Four months after TCRI came into existence -- and with a zero track record -- it bagged the "second biggest contract in Napocor's coal procurement" history.

Nobody paid too much attention to the TCRI transaction until recently when President Arroyo appointed Zenaida Ducut, her deputy chief presidential legal counsel, to head ERC. Right after her appointment, fireworks flared up from all sectors. Ducut's appointment was branded as "politically motivated" and perceived to serve Gloria's political agenda. It is said that whoever controls energy power controls political power.

Aside from being a town mate of Gloria, Zenaida Ducut is a close political ally of Gloria's son, Congressman Mikey Arroyo. Ducut was a three-term congresswoman of Pampanga's second district. Termed out in 2004, she was succeeded by Mikey. A lawyer by profession, she practiced law for a while and her biggest client was the reputed "Jueteng King" of the illegal numbers game, Rodolfo "Bong" Pineda. Incidentally, Gloria, Bong and Zenaida all hail from Lubao, Pampanga.

As to Zenaida Ducut's relationship with Leslie and Ressie Ducut, Zenaida did not only deny that she was related to Leslie and Ressie, she also denied knowing them. Lubao is a small town where virtually everybody knew one another. Since Zenaida served as the second district's -- which included Lubao -- representative in Congress for nine years, would it not be fair to presume that she would know Leslie and Ressie? After all, the three of them share the last name "Ducut," a surname that is not as common as "Garcia" or "Santos."

With Gloria calling the shots in Malacanang and the powerful -- and influential -- House Energy Committee dominated by her two sons, committee chairman Mikey and Dato Arroyo, and her brother-in-law Iggy Arroyo, Ducut could become the perfect puppet of the Arroyo family. However, Ducut asserted that she will remain neutral and independent. If she would be able to maintain neutrality and independence, then more power to her. Her first order of business -- and first test of her "independence" -- should then be to look into the anomalous TCRI contract.

Was there overpricing involved in awarding the P1.27 billion contract? And, are the Ducuts only acting as "dummies" for certain people? If so, who were the real people behind TCRI? (PerryDiaz@gmail. com)