Indebted Zamboanga power firm buys luxury vehicles, band equipment

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / June 15, 2010) – Heavily indebted Zamboanga City’s electric cooperative has been the center of controversy again after it purchased band equipment worth more than one million pesos.

The Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative said the equipment would be used for important occasions. The purchased of the band equipment surfaced after a citizen phoned the local radio station dxRZ to inform them about the deal.

Just recently, the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative borrowed money from local banks to purchase millions of pesos worth of utility and luxury vehicles for its managers and workers. It said the purchases were approved by the cooperative’s board of directors.

The purchases of the vehicles were publicly known after citizens also contacted the dxRZ and provided information about it. The radio station reported that the local electric cooperative had purchased at least 36 vehicles, mostly from the Korean car maker Kia Motors.

It was unknown whether Kia Motors gave out commissions for the purchases. It was unclear why the cooperative’s board of directors approved the purchases of the band equipment and luxury vehicles despite its ballooning debts which is now more than one billion pesos.

“There is clearly mismanagement here by the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative,” said Cesar Jimenez Jr., a member of the Zamboanga City Council, who is among several lawmakers that questioned the extravagant spending of the power firm.

Prior to that, the electric cooperative said it was planning to lease modular generator sets to augment power requirements of Zamboanga City, which in recent months had experienced rotational blackout as long as six hours a day due to low water levels in hydropower plants in Mindanao which supply electricity here.

But the situation now has improved drastically because of the end of the dry season.

Despite this, the electric cooperative now said there is a need to put up a coal-fired power plant in Zamboanga City.

On Tuesday, the power firm said it would increase rates after the local government charged the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative new taxes worth millions of pesos. It said it would pass on to consumers the money it paid to City Hall.

Electric consumers have complained about the high cost of power rates the local cooperatives are charging. Others have asked the National Electrification Administration to investigate the purchases and other dealings of the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative. (Mindanao Examiner)