Anti-subsidy Noy
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When Noynoy took over the presidency and gave a pledge to consider all Filipinos his “boss,” among his first statements, ironically, was a pledge to remove all subsidies on government-ran utility services, including power and mass transit services.
By making an example of the policy of Gloria to throw financial support, or subsidies in other forms, to artificially reduce the pricing of politically-volatile utility services, a practice that was, however, used as her survival ploy, was the prime consideration and not public welfare, Noynoy insisted that subsidies are part of the past crooked ways.
He made a case about Gloria placing a cap on the collection of the reviled purchased power adjustment which are the charges independent power producers (IPPs) impose on state firm National Power Corp. (Napocor) as a result of the burdensome contracts that former President Fidel Ramos signed that included the so-called take or pay provision which guaranteed government payments whether or not the IPP plants supply electricity.
The capping of the charges resulted, however, in the piling up of the deferred payments that up to now makes up a substantial part of monthly electricity bills making electricity charges among the highest in the world..... MORE
Source: The Daily Tribune
URL: http://www.tribuneonline.org/commentary/20110911com1.html
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