Assailing the irregularity of the one-year term extension of the Board of Directors of Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative II (NORECO 2), adopted based on an advisory issued by the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA), Coop-NATCCO Representative Cresente C. Paez delivered a privilege speech at the House of Representatives on Tuesday, February 2. The legislator questioned the legality of said advisory and urged Congress to investigate the present governance of NORECO 2 and the supervisory and regulatory conduct of the CDA.

“I believe that CDA gravely abused its regulatory and supervisory powers as it deprived the electric cooperative members their right to elect the new set of Directors, not to mention the fact that it violated Art. 37 of RA 9520 providing for a two-year limit in the terms of members of the Board of Directors, unless there's an amendment in the By-Laws legitimately approved by the General Assembly,” Congressman Paez said.

The term of NORECO 2 Directors will expire this year and election is supposedly set this month, February. However, the incumbent Board of Directors unanimously voted to adopt CDA Advisory issued on 20 January 2010, signed by CDA Administrator Fulgencio Vigare, to postpone the conduct of the pre-planned district elections to the first quarter of 2011.

The CDA Advisory invoked COMELEC Resolution No. 8716 promulgated on December 17 2009, which deputized the Electric cooperatives in the Local Government Units to provide uninterrupted power supply on the day before and on Election Day, until the termination and conclusion of the canvassing of the election returns and proclamation of elected officials are completed.

Given such, the cooperative solon raised two legal issues. First, “Is the CDA Advisory a correct and sound interpretation and/or application of the Comelec Resolution?” Second, “Assuming that it is, can the Comelec Resolution and the CDA Advisory supersede RA 9520, also known as the Philippine Cooperative Code of 2008?”

“To my mind the CDA Advisory is over-arching in its interpretation of the Comelec Resolution. I could not fathom any justification why it had to direct All Electric Cooperatives to postpone their elections to next year. How could the Elections of the Board of Directors of NORECO 2, scheduled three months before the national and local polls, in any way affect and jeopardize its assignment to provide uninterrupted power supply for the May 2010 elections?” Paez added.

“Without exaggeration, consumers and members of NORECO 2 are apparently disgusted by the news. To us in the coop sector, the supreme power resides in the General Assembly, and this power is exercised most effectively in the members’ right to vote,” Paez said citing reactions posted at Negros Chronicles website.

Earlier, Paez filed a resolution urging Congress to probe CDA's authorization, through Vigare, to implement amendments to NORECO 2’s By-Laws made in 2008.

NORECO 2 is a CDA-registered electric cooperative providing electric power needs of more or less thirteen (13) towns within the Negros Oriental Province. #