Several groups yesterday claimed there is need to protect the welfare of the consumers of Central Negros Electric Cooperative after the preventive suspension by the National Electrification Administration Board of five CENECO officials, including board president Eddie Guillem.

Moven Ligahon, secretary general of Freedom from Debt Coalition-Negros, said they laud the preventive suspension order and called on the NEA Administrative Committee to impose appropriate penalty for those found liable for violations.

During the AdCom hearing in Bacolod last year, FDC-Negros chairman Romeo Lavilla had sought the preventive suspension and the subsequent dismissal of the CENECO officials involved in the alleged illegal transactions.

NEA placed under a 30-day preventive Guillem, officer-in-charge Noriel Bermudez, board vice president Jobert Tagobader, secretary Gregorio Duremdes, and treasurer Gerardo Solas pending the resolution of the administrative charges they are facing before NEA.

With the suspension of its key officials, the NEA management team has named Eddie Adlao as project supervisor for CENECO.

The Partido ng Manggagawa called the NEA action "right and laudable" for the welfare of the CENECO consumers in a statement it issued.

The group said it stands on the spirit of good governance in managing the cooperative which its directors had neglected.

Felipe Levy Gelle, secretary-general of BAYAN-Negros, however, said it seems the suspension of Guillem and four others is not enough considering the gravity of the charges they are facing and amount of money involved.

The administrative charges against the suspended CENECO officials involve, among others, the issues on the contract executed by Guillem and Bermudez with supplier Power Star Inc. using the Reinvestment Fund and the alleged irregularity in the contract executed with both Power Star Inc. and Pazifik Power Inc.

The five CENECO officials were suspended almost five months after the NEA AdCom conducted an investigation on the adverse audit findings on CENECO, covering the period Jan. 1, 2002 to Dec. 31, 2005.

The NEA Board said that "on the basis on the NEA-Electric Cooperatives Audit Department audit report and on the documents submitted before the AdCom, the charges against the respondents involve grave misconduct and open defiance to NEA Policy, Order and Issuances, with a corresponding penalty of removal on the first offense."*NLG

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