By Atty. Antonio P. Pekas
When I heard of the news a few days ago that Atty. Marie Rafael was at the Beneco headquarters to take over as general manager (GM) but was vehemently being opposed, I was cheering for her, even if I was in bed nursing my “dangerously high” blood pressure.
I was about to send her a message on FB that it was the right thing to do but that would have been a distraction to her as it appeared she and her advisers knew what they were doing. Firstly, her “assumption” as GM or doing GM duties could forestall any attempt to get a temporary restraining order (TRO) to stop her from assuming the post as GM because she could then say, “I already did”, so there would be nothing to stop. That issue would then be moot and academic.
She could have exercised GM powers even under the trees or in a corner of the corridors as she was barred from entering the GM’s office. Is that what she is doing right now?
The second reason why I knew Atty. Marie Rafael and her group knew what they were doing is the timing of her move. It was done right before the very long weekend due to the Monday holiday. With that, her opponents were unable to rush to court for any legal remedy that could have derailed her moves. Such could be obtained even with imagined or flimsy grounds, if the case went to the wrong court.
The next day, the “fireworks” at Beneco continued. Sadly, I saw some faces there who are known to be schemers or always on the lookout for opportunities to become members of the group who might soon be running Beneco—whichever side that might be. They could find ways to operate a syndicate at Beneco. So both sides must beware of such opportunists.
Which side to I belong? I belong to the side of change. For a long time, Beneco was being run by a group who opposed its being registered with the CDA (Cooperative Development Authority) and when they were seeing an impending threat to their power or control over the “cooperative”, they maneuvered it so it would finally be registered with the CDA. That was a total about face. There, they knew they could continue their control and could stave off any attempt of other power outfits from taking over.
The extended control of any group over any outfit could make them think they own the outfit and would act accordingly. They would then start dispensing favors favorable only to their self-interest and not to the best interest of the cooperative.
An example? Dealing with the media. There was this article in Manila Times a few weeks ago, where it was alleged that Beneco had been “ladling money to the media” so they would not dig out anomalies. She cited the huge loans Beneco had been getting which were not, and still are not, necessary for undertaking its functions as a power distributor. Cited was the acquisition of the land at South Drive where its headquarter is now located. Was that really necessary? And also the construction of the building there? By the way, who got the commission from the sale of that land to Beneco? How about from the construction of that building?
How about the perks or benefits to members of the Board and executives or high ranking officers? Now, there are many allegations on Facebook about loans obtained by such members and officers from Beneco in the millions of pesos? There were also allegations of overstaying board members and others who have become denizens of casinos. While these have to be treated as mere salacious gossip, they should be worth digging into.
As to ladling of money to the media, we were not one of the recipients. We were known to be the only critic of Beneco. I remember clearly our front page story in the past on the alleged anomalies in the housing project of Beneco. Splattered on the front page of that issue was the big picture of cracks on the wall of one of the housing units which clearly showed it was substandard.
And the only ads of substance we ever got from Beneco were those given to all the local outfits.
I am very sure that any new administration at Beneco, if it will really exert effort to dig out for anomalies would find a treasure trove. And I hope that will happen soon. A lot of heads should roll or haled to court. It will be a good memorable service to the community, especially to Beneco member-consumers.
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