JPE’s rise to senate presidency 'reward' for Transco 'sale' – FDC

MANILA, Philippines - Administration senator Juan Ponce Enrile's rise to the Senate presidency may have been one of his rewards for privatizing the National Transmission Corp. (Transco), a debt watchdog group claimed. The Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) said Enrile pushed a bill granting a national franchise to the National Grid Power Corp. (NGPC) to operate Transco, the country's "crown jewel." "Senator Juan Ponce Enrile may have gained the reward following his take-over of the Senate. The people could have lost the 'crown', but somebody may have gained the 'throne' out of it," it said on its website. However, the FDC said this is not yet the end of the battle since the failures of this privatization program itself creates the imperative for reversing it. It said it now embarks on a project of formulating alternatives to the current setup. FDC said it is deeply saddened that the battle to protect the country's "crown jewel" is lost as Transco is now under private control. "Surrendering control of the national grid was the government's biggest loss and blunder in pushing for the privatization of the power industry," it said. FDC said that since transmission is a natural monopoly and considered the backbone of the industry, the state should remain in control of it. It added Transco is the nation's "last line of defense" in the power industry against the onslaught of privatization. "Because transmission is a natural monopoly, whoever gets hold of it is bestowed with monopoly power. And monopoly in business means not only economic power but also political power," it said. The group said such political power clearly manifested in the way how the bidding process was captured and the franchise law was conceded through a powerful lobby and political connections. In the House of Representatives, the franchise bill was approved stealthily, while in the Senate, only four senators voted against it. In a controversial auction held in December 2007, PSALM awarded the contract to a consortium led by the State Grid Corp. of China, Monte Oro Grid Resources Corporation (MOGRC) and Calaca High Power for a bid price of $3.95 billion. - GMANews.TV