Former Bayan Muna Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate lauded the Energy Regulatory Commission’s (ERC) decision to revoke Siquijor Island Power Corporation’s (SIPCOR) permit to operate, calling it “a long overdue action that exposes the failures of energy privatization.”
Zarate said the Siquijor power crisis, marked by months of 11-hour daily blackouts, was a direct consequence of placing essential services in the hands of profit-driven corporations.
“This is exactly the problem with privatization—it prioritizes profit over service to the people,” he said. “Ang mga kumpanyang ito ay mas nangingibabaw ang kita kaysa sa paglilingkod sa publiko.”
He cited SIPCOR’s violations, including operating without valid certificates, using unauthorized equipment, and failing to maintain fuel supplies, as proof of “corporate irresponsibility that has become endemic under the privatized energy sector.”
“While we welcome this regulatory action, we must ask how SIPCOR, a subsidiary of the Villar Group, was allowed to operate with such blatant disregard for compliance requirements,” Zarate stated.
He urged the ERC to expand its investigation to other privatized utilities “taken over by oligarchs like the Villars, which did not serve and deliver the expected services to the public.” Zarate added.
“The ERC should not stop with SIPCOR, it should also include other privatized power companies with poor service record and are only used by these oligarchs to take in more profits.”
Zarate emphasized that the Siquijor crisis should prompt a broader reconsideration of energy privatization.
“Essential services like electricity should serve the people first, not corporate shareholders,” he said.
“But more importantly,” Zarate concluded, “this SIPCOR case should also be a ground for Congress to investigate and pave way for a repeal of the EPIRA and put a total stop to this devastating effect of privatization.” (ZIA LUNA)
