The rising cost of living and the struggle for survival among hundreds of thousands of Filipinos are most easily seen in the huge increases in food prices and the electricity bills they receive every month. The Power for People Coalition has challenged President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to act on his promise made during his most recent State of the Nation Address to remove the system loss charges from those bills.
System loss, or the electrical energy lost as electricity travels from the power generation source through transmission lines and distribution networks before finally reaching consumers, accounts for up to 12 percent of consumers’ power bills. Both the Senate and the House of Representatives are actively debating bills like the System Loss Charge Removal Act, pushed by President Marcos, to completely ban utilities from charging consumers for these losses.
Several electric cooperatives (ECs) incur greater system losses due to poor maintenance, failure to detect illegal power connections, and defective, old or tampered meters. ECs also lose money when their officials pay themselves huge salaries and bonuses.
Recently, the Zambales II Electric Cooperative (ZAMECO II) charged the Preda children’s home P125,000 for a failed transformer in Nagbayan village, Castillejos town. This is illegal. It is the responsibility of the EC to replace the transformer free of charge, as mandated by law.
The children’s home could only raise P20,000 and paid the amount under duress to save the children from further distress and fear, as ZAMECO II left them without electricity for three days. The children’s home protested the injustice and suffering inflicted on the children, who endured the unbearable heat and darkness of the countryside during those days.
There were no lights or electric fans, no refrigeration and no water. As a result, food was spoiled. ZAMECO II officials did not seem to care and demanded that the children’s home pay for a new transformer or go without electricity.
The director of the Preda children’s home appealed to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for relief and action. Lawyer Leila Grace A. San Pedro of the ERC’s Consumer Affairs Service said her team would take appropriate action to resolve the case, but no action had been taken as of the time of writing.
Article 14 of the Magna Carta for Residential Electricity Consumers says the company supplying electricity is responsible for the “overhead system, poles, lines, and transformers.” In addition, Section 23 of Republic Act 9136, or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 (EPIRA), places the responsibility for supplying transformers on the EC or power company.
The law demands that ZAMECO II provide the transformer and pay for it, not consumers. Then as now, having electricity is more than a privilege. It is a necessity, like air and water, especially for children.
Those at the Preda home are undergoing therapy after suffering abuse and exploitation in their homes and communities, and now they are made to suffer anew because of this.
Hundreds of thousands of poor Filipino consumers are similarly distressed by being overcharged by ECs and power companies. They feel powerless to obtain basic services and low-cost electricity.
Consumers need to stop voting for people belonging to influential families that own or are allied with such firms and elect those who will secure justice for them and enforce our laws.
Corrupt acts
ZAMECO II has faced a number of corruption and mismanagement allegations from consumer groups and lawmakers. One of them, the Castillejos Consumers Association, or CASCONA, filed a landmark case against ZAMECO II several years ago.
The EC’s board of directors was found guilty of corrupt acts and removed but was not punished. The Supreme Court later upheld the decision. So the corruption continues, it seems.
In July 2026, Zambales 1st District Rep. Jay Khonghun pushed for a House inquiry into ZAMECO II due to lingering complaints of widespread corruption, consumer overcharging and anti-consumer behavior, such as withholding electric power from the Preda children’s home until it paid a huge sum of money.
It was like blackmail. It was as if they were saying: Pay up or suffer more.
ZAMECO II is still demanding payment for the transformer, which the children’s home maintains is illegal. The management of the children’s home is taking a stand, saying it is not obliged to pay for the transformer and will continue to expose the gross injustice and violation of the law allegedly committed by ZAMECO II and its officials.
Electricity supply in the Philippines is largely controlled by a small number of prominent conglomerates and family-owned corporations. This came about when rich political families that control Congress passed EPIRA, which privatized the electricity supply chain and put the sector in the hands of a few corporations.
However, each company is limited to having 25 percent of the energy market to prevent a complete monopoly by one or two corporations. ERC data showed that five major players control the vast majority of the country’s installed capacity.
The Masinloc power plant in Zambales is owned by San Miguel Global Power. The facility burns coal, and the firm is a subsidiary of San Miguel Corp., led by Ramon S. Ang. According to the figures cited in the article, the company accounts for 19.62 percent of the energy market. It also owns the Sual and Ilijan power plants.
Aboitiz Power Corp., or AboitizPower, has 24.30 percent and produces electricity using coal, hydropower and solar power. First Gen Corp., owned by the Lopez family, has 10.74 percent and is involved in geothermal, natural gas and hydropower generation.
The Ayala Group’s ACEN Corp. has 6.91 percent and is involved in wind and solar power generation. Finally, Manuel V. Pangilinan-owned Meralco PowerGen Corp. has 6.70 percent.
The country’s transmission grid is operated and controlled by the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP). It is a private consortium whose members include Henry Sy Jr. of the SM Group/Monte Oro Grid Resources; Robert Coyiuto Jr. of Calaca High Power Corp.; and the State Grid Corp. of China (SGCC), which holds a 40-percent stake.
These families and the SGCC, not the government, hold significant control over the nation’s electricity sector. You might say the country is run by private corporations and regulated by the government, which the ruling families also dominate through their cronies and relatives.
The Philippines, you might say, is truly privatized, but its 113 million Filipinos are not part of it.
Note: Any original information, stories, or news articles posted on this site that are authored by the Preda Foundation and Father Shay Cullen may be shared, copied, or reproduced without further permission, in support of truth, freedom of expression, and the public’s right to know.
LiCAS News was granted permission to republish and adapt this article by Father Shay Cullen in the spirit of truth-telling and the pursuit of justice.
Irish missionary Father Shay Cullen, SSC, founded the Preda Foundation in Olongapo City in 1974 to promote human rights and the rights of children, especially victims of sexual abuse.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of LiCAS News.
