By Gemma Q. Casas
Variety News Staff

TWO House lawmakers say election year has nothing to do with their decision to override the governor’s veto of a bill lowering residential electric rates.
The new law, according to the Commonwealth Utilities Corp., could mean more blackouts in the months ahead if their projected revenue loss of more than $8 million is not replenished.
Vice Speaker Justo S. Quitugua, D-Saipan, said CUC’s “scare tactics” are already underway.
“The power outages have begun even before we reduced the rates,” he said.
Quitugua and House Minority Leader Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, said while it is true that the override came just barely a month before the Nov. 3 midterm elections, it wasn’t intentional and that they worked on the measure as early as last year.
“There is no electioneering here. We gave the administration time to decide on this issue,” Palacios said, adding that they were hoping that the administration would be able to form a board for the Public Utilities Commission, but this has yet to happen
Press Secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr., who earlier asked the Legislature not to politicize the issue of electric rates, said the people will have to decide on Nov. 3.
Palacios, the principal author of the bill, H.B. 15-246, introduced it on April 4.
The House passed it on May 29 and the Senate on Aug. 16.
On Sept. 14, Governor Benigno R. Fitial vetoed the bill, saying it would further destabilize CUC’s financial situation.
He noted that the bill will only benefit residential customers and not the government or commercial establishments.
Palacios said he was told that CUC’s budget for fiscal year 2008 will reach $117 million.
Of this amount, he said $15 million will go to personnel expense and the rest to its operations budget, including fuel purchases.
However, he said CUC hasn’t been able to submit to the Legislature any breakdown of its proposed budget.
“The CUC management must give a proper account of how it spends it earnings,” said Palacios. “It’s not on fuel alone that they spend so much. They keep on hiring consultants. We don’t know how much these consultants are getting paid.”
“They have order parts as far back as six years ago and some of those parts haven’t arrived yet. No one is making them accountable for their actions,” he added.
According to Palacios, CUC hired at least four consultants in recent months including the Philippine-based Delgado & Associates, Quantum Consultants based in the U.S. and Economists.com, which is also based in the U.S.
Palacios said CUC should be more transparent in its dealings and not just blame its financial problems on the rising cost of imported fuel.