Licoben main contender for Beneco GM; two out in final NEA screening

BAGUIO CITY – Two contenders for the post of general manager of the Benguet Electric Cooperative are out of contention leaving only Beneco assistant general manager engineer Melchor Licoben for appointment to the electric cooperative.
    This, after engineer Artemio Bacoco, supervisor of Beneco’s Man-asok hydro dam in Buguias, Benguet, manifested to the NEA board of administrators Monday he was not pursuing his application to sit as GM after final screening was given by the NEA in Cebu on Monday to applicants.
    Former Beneco employee engineer Merlie Landocan was reportedly disqualified during final screening.
With this, Licoben is set to be endorsed by the NEA BOA to the Beneco interim, board for confirmation as GM, Bacoco said.
    Licoben was former GM, having been appointed to the position by the previous board of directors, but the NEA downgraded his position to assistant GM after it appointed former Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary Anna Marie Rafael as GM which was opposed by member-consumer-owners who drove her out of the main Beneco headquarters here at South Drive last year. 
    The NEA also terminated term of the previous Beneco board of directors.
    MCOs have since called for election of BODs but interim board members said they will appoint first a GM before the polls.
    This made the Lower House probe the controversy saying the NEA “over-“reached” its functions by appointing a general manager and terminating term of the previous Beneco Board.   
    Following this, all Benguet municipal local governments, in resolutions, called for elections to settle the issue.
    To date, MCOs are still pressing for elections but Beneco sources said elections would be held January next year.    
    The interim board, they said, was appointed by the NEA and not elected by MCOs.  
    The five members of Task Force Beneco, the interim board, took their oath Jan. 11, 2023 before NEA Administrator Antonio Almeda.
    They were Joaquin Gerenimo Depalog Jr., Elma Donaal, Steve Cating, George Dumawing and Rodolfo De Guia representing sectors such as the business, academe/education, consumer, professional, agricultural and religious sectors.
    The task force was given the mandate to serve for six months and within said period, install Beneco network systems manager Ramel Rifani as acting general manager and call for the election of district representatives who will comprise the regular BOD and appointment of the regular general manager.
    MCOs are now saying the interim board should now schedule as soon as possible elections to select the new BODs considering the former’s terms have since lapsed.

The Dept. of Energy earlier directed Almeda to act as Beneco’s project supervisor for   six months which has since lapsed.

Almeda was tasked to supervise management and operation of the electric cooperative to ensure delivery of electric service to the member-consumer-owners.

Ramel Rifani was earlier appointed acting general manager but was later replaced by Bacoco.

Later Bacoco was replaced by lawyer Delmar Carino who at present sits as OIC GM.

Almeda earlier said he intended to prioritize election of Beneco’s regular board of directors, as well as the appointment of a regular general manager within his tenure as project supervisor.

According to NEA, Beneco’s rating as an electric cooperative has regressed to category C from AAA   in the 2019 overall performance assessment.

MCOs however said it was the NEA’s fault that the AAA classification was downgrated due to its own fault for interfering in Beneco affairs by appointing Rafael which led to turmoil in the power cooperative.

Almeda earlier assured stakeholders of the rural electrification sector that only the most qualified individuals would manage the electric cooperatives nationwide to make them globally competitive.

He said this would be achieved by making sure that proper and fair selection process is followed at all times.

To this, MCOS said this remains to be seen considering the case of who is the rightful Beneco GM is still pending in the Court of Appeals.  

The Beneco had been wracked with controversies the past two years when the National Electrification Administration appointed a new general manager and ordered removal of BODs which was questioned by lawyers and MCOs.