The discretionary power to appoint a general manager of an electric cooperative exclusively belongs to the board of directors of the firm, and not to the National Electrification Administration board of administrators, according to lawmakers.
Members of the House of Representatives made this clear to the NEA board of administrators, then chaired by Manny Juaneza as it served notice to the NEA to keep its hands off the selection of officials of privately-owned electric cooperatives. Juaneza now sits as administrator of NEA.
The lawmakers adopted a resolution on Sept. 23 which noted that the NEA encroached into the private domain of Benguet Electric Cooperative by endorsing its own choice for general manager of the distribution utility.
The measure urged the NEA to revoke its recommendation. The House committee on energy advised the affected parties to maintain the status quo in the leadership structure of Beneco “under pain of contempt until all the issues in the selection of the general manager have been resolved.”
“The NEA-BOA [board of administrators], in the exercise of the authority to process the applications for the position of general manager, took upon itself to interpret and apply certain provisions of its own issuance that will only cater to its own intention considering that even the memorandum it issued has provisions that are clear and precise with no room for misinterpretations,” the resolution read.
The committee also noted that the NEA directors were unfamiliar with the selection process stipulated in Memorandum 2017-035, adding it was tantamount to failure in implementing the rules and regulations on the matter.
The memorandum identified two options for selection of the general manager. One is to declare the position vacant and accept applications for the position, and two, recommending an applicant to the NEA.
It said that in Beneco’s case, it appeared that the NEA itself screened the applicants then made its own recommendation thereby violating its own rules and regulations.
The committee issued the resolution in an apparent bid to rectify the selection of general manager for the Beneco, with the NEA endorsing Anna Maria Paz Rafael-Banaag to replace the sitting general manager, Melchor Licoben, who was an old-timer at the cooperative.
Meanwhile, Licoben mustered a groundswell of support from his staff, supporters and stakeholders.
“We employees and consumer-member-owners of Beneco have spoken already—we have expressed our unequivocal support to the management of Beneco, its board of directors and they appointed general manager Engr. Melchor Licoben,” the concerned employees said in a letter to Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of the Senate energy committee.
“Please respect the decision of the electric cooperative’s employees and member-consumer-owners. NEA and its representatives have tried using force just to implement their biased decision, but we are willing to fight for what is right, and as such, we will continue to be vigilant in guarding our electric cooperative,” the letter stated.
They argued that Banaag lacked some of the qualifications specified by the NEA to ensure that electric cooperatives viably operate, as opposed to Licoben who met all the norms laid down by the NEA under the “fit and proper rule” requirement.
“A candidate’s integrity, experience, competence and probity shall be considered in determining whether he or she shall be fit and proper to become a director or officer of the electric cooperative,” the employees said.
They also maintained that Licoben did not have to relinquish his post as an officer-in-charge of the cooperative “because he was not considered by the board of directors as an applicant—he was recommended or promoted because there was a succession plan in place in Beneco,” which was approved by NEA itself.
