ALIPING CALLS FOR ELECTION OF BENECO BOARD OF DIRECTORS

January 12, 2024 Metro BLISTT

BAGUIO CITY

Liga ng mga Barangay President Rocky Aliping is pushing for the immediate conduct of the election of the regular members of the Board of Directors (BOD) of the Benguet Electric Cooperative
(BENECO). During the regular session of the Baguio City Council on January 8, 2024, Aliping filed a resolution seeking to enjoin the Interim Board of Directors of BENECO and the National
Electrification Administration (NEA) to immediately conduct the said election.

However, the city council deferred the approval of the said resolution and referred it to the
Committee on Public Utilities, Transportation, and Traffic Legislation chaired by Councilor Benny Bomogao for further study. Aliping, a former member of BENECO BOD and now a member of the city council, said the election for the BENECO BOD members must take place at the soonest possible time following the installation of Engr. Melchor Licoben as the electric cooperative’s general manager.

He said these BOD members elected through a transparent electoral process in their respective districts would be the official policy makers to address pertinent issues impacting the operation and
management of the electric cooperative. Aliping recalled that, in the past years, BENECO was beset
with numerous controversies which prompted the NEA to intervene inorder to address these issues which, according to him, created confusion that plagued the electric cooperative.

In the absence of the BENECO BOD as a result of these series of “unfortunate” events, NEA Board of Administrators created a multisectoral task force to act as an interim policy-making body for
the electric cooperative effective January 10, 2023 until a regular board is created. This task force is composed of a chairperson representing the business sector and representatives from the
consumer, professional, religious, academe/education, and agricultural sectors. The proposed resolution shall be discussed in the city council after the committee reports out its recommendations.

Jordan G. Habbiling/SP