By Ben Contreras RIGHT or wrong, the fact remains that public perception points to a tendency among service utilities to charge some of their losses to the consuming public in the name of continuous and better services. At times, we, the consumers, feel that we are being held hostage to this. During a meeting with Cepalco representatives arranged by Konsomanteng Kagay-anon Inc., Cepalco presented the rationale of their petition to the Energy Regulatory Commission for passing their “force majeure” losses to the consuming public. The immediate reaction of the consumers was naturally one of great disappointment knowing that Cepalco earns more than a hundred million a year (net). The presentation was one that didn’t immediately make us understand. It took several questions and answers, interaction, before we finally came to terms. As the illustration would show, Cepalco incurred a force majeure loss of P30 million, more or less. A portion of this is recoverable from the insurance company. With this loss, Cepalco is petitioning for a .0075/kw increase spread over a three year period. What is this to any Juan de la Cruz? It means that if you are consuming 100kw a month, your additional charge would be P0.75 only. If I consume 400kw in a month, that would only be P3 additional to my monthly bill. That’s not really a burden to me considering that we pay more than that for fuel. But then, in cases like this, Cepalco needs to explain things in layman’s terms that would be more understandable to the masses. Besides, there is still a question of whether the move is right or wrong in a moral sense. The Cagayan de Oro Water District (COWD) seems to have attempted to do that. The loud noise may have compelled its officials to abandon a similar move, notwithstanding its huge losses. Cepalco is earning. Its income chart always points to black at the end of each fiscal year. Maybe for once, Cepalco could just charge it to operational losses. If spread three years, that won’t be much, really! Of course, it is just a petition. Cepalco representatives have considered recommending the various suggestions given by consumers. In fairness to Cepalco, it has been serving the people of Cagayan de Oro City quite satisfactorily compared to the neighboring provinces. It was acknowledged with a round of applause! Special recognition to KKI for initiating the meeting!

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A photo was sent to me last week. On it were the words “No man’s land.” At the back of the photo are the words “Puntod, Balulang, CDO... illegal construction... no building permit... no ECC... no quarry permit.” And then a name of a “dummy,” a certain Pearson, was given. The area was declared as a place where no one should establish a home because of the risks. But the photo clearly shows a crushing plant is being constructed there. That place in Puntod was flooded during Sendong devastation last December. The water marks are still visible even on the coconut trees there. How could such a plant be constructed in a place prone to flooding? That would place workers to risk. Who is this Pearson and why is he being called a “dummy”? Something fishy is going on there.