Leaders of the two most influential groups in the electric cooperative (EC) sector reiterated the “absolute need and indispensability” of assured government funding for the recently-signed law providing financial support for ECs in times of calamities and disasters.
President Rodrigo Duterte signed last June 29 Republic Act 11039 which mandates the creation of an Electric Cooperatives Emergency and Resiliency Fund (ECERF), which will receive an initial appropriated amount for emergency and resiliency initiatives.
The heads of the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association, Inc. (Philreca) and the National Association of General Managers of Electric Cooperatives (NAGMEC) both shared the same sentiment that “without funds, this milestone piece of legislation on rural electrification would be meaningless.”
RA 11039 appropriates an initial amount of P750 million as state funding for ECs’ emergency and resiliency initiatives. The money shall be taken from the P 7-billion budget of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management fund for electric cooperatives.
House Appropriations Committee Chair and Davao City 1st district Rep. Karlo “Ang Probinsyano” Nograles had publicly guaranteed the availability of funds for the new measure once Congress deliberates on the 2019 national budget next month.
Nograles stressed that emergency funding for ECs is crucially needed “since we are entering the typhoon season, and we expect weather disturbances to cause disruptions in the delivery of life-saving electricity services in affected areas. We want electricity providers such as ECs to be adequately equipped to address these types of emergencies. They should be assured that funding is there when they need it.”
Philreca President Presley De Jesus was thankful that “Congress through Congressman Nograles has assured 100% that funding will be ready and available to give full effect to RA 11039.”
“Congress through Congressman Nograles has assured 100% that funding will be ready and available to give full effect to RA 11039.”
NAGMEC, meanwhile, through its President Sergio Dagooc noted that funding is direly needed to assist the ECs achieve their part in pushing rural electrification programs forward.
“The financial security provided by RA 11039 will go a long way in sustaining the important tasks performed by our ECs nationwide.”
“It’s important that distribution utilities such as ECs are able to continue providing electrification services, rain or shine. The financial security provided by RA 11039 will go a long way in sustaining the important tasks performed by our ECs nationwide,” Dagooc stressed.
Electric coops, which fall under the supervision of the National Electrification Administration (NEA), service a total of 12 million families throughout the country.
NEA Administrator Edgardo Masongsong had earlier thanked President Duterte for the law’s signing, saying RA 11039 is a welcome development not only to the 121 ECs supervised by the state-run agency but also to their member-consumer-owners (MCOs) across the country.
“We believe this new measure reflects the Administration’s commitment to support ECs and member-consumer-owners. It assures the immediate rehabilitation of power facilities damaged by natural calamities and relieves them of the financial burden stemming from the cost of reconstruction,” Masongsong said.