Amid a colossal debt burden
Severe graft and corruption in Napocor

Basahin ang artikulong ito sa Pilipino

Of the many government-owned and -controlled corporations (GOCCs) in the red, it is the National Power Corporation (Napocor) that is the most bankrupt, losing more than P166 billion in the past six years. It is expected to lose another P114 billion by the end of this year. In 2003 alone, its total debt of P1.3 trillion constituted 42% of the country's overall debt.

Napocor has incurred tremendous losses, not because it provides cheap electricity to the people, but because

One example is Napocor chair Rogelio Murga, who receives P107,000 a month, aside from enjoying other benefits and privileges. Murga's scandalous salary was exposed only this September. He has since been forced to tender his resignation.

Instead of reprimanding Murga for living it up and neglecting Napocor, the Arroyo regime has even praised him for the "fine" things he has done for the company. One of them is a Napocor cost reduction program involving "streamlining" or the mass termination of workers and employees. Under his leadership, Napocor has reduced its workforce from 8,000 to 3,700. The company had a 13,000-strong workforce in 1998. The move is supposed to have saved the government P800 million.

But together with the much-vaunted austerity move, Napocor has spent over P10 billion for the retirement benefits of its high-ranking officials. Some retirees have moreover been reinstated, like former Napocor president Rolando Quilala, who is now the company's senior vice-president for corporate services.

Despite the expos� of these anomalies, the regime has merely called on the corporation's ranking officers to institute "austerity measures" in line with the government's hypocritical campaign. The regime has made a show of trading barbs with congress on who should take the blame for allowing Napocor's officers to enjoy such exorbitant salaries. At the same time, however, it has defended the avaricious officials, rationalizing that they have merely been receiving salaries equivalent to those of their counterparts in the private sector.

At present, the country's overall debt stands at P5.4 trillion�P3.3 trillion of which was directly incurred by government, with the balance of P2.1 trillion consisting of debts by government corporations. But about a third or P1 trillion of the P3.3 trillion government debt actually consists of GOCC debts assumed by government.

Arroyo ordered in July the privatization of 70% of Napocor's generation assets within 18 months, saying this was the only way government could avoid the debacle of being saddled with debts it could ill-afford to pay. The regime has even been peddling the lie that the entry of foreign buyers into Napocor would bring down electricity rates as a result of competition. Arroyo has been irritatingly repetitive in drumming up support for privatization even though the people know only too well that it will result in spiralling electricity costs.

21 September 2004
English Edition

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