IN a scathing article posted on its website, the Hong Kong-based news outlet BNN Breaking exposed the role of Philippine Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla in awarding the Malampaya gas field service contract to Prime Energy owned by Filipino tycoon Ricky Razon, known to be a good friend of Philippine President Bongbong Marcos. (See “Malampaya Debacle: Lotilla’s Endorsement of Razon’s Prime Energy Sparks Outrage Amid Output Crisis.”)
Prime’s technical qualifications for running a gas production operation were in grave doubt from the start based on stipulations provided by Presidential Decree 87 regarding the selection process for service contractors. The transition of Malampaya’s operations from multinational oil companies Chevron and Shell to Prime Energy, the BNN article continued, has been anything but smooth with “operational inefficiencies and a glaring lack of transparency… threatening to increase power rates and cause potential electricity supply disruptions.”
The fact that the Philippine Department of Energy quickly came to Razon’s defense brings into question the “accountability and the integrity of public decision-making.” The focus is now firmly on Secretary’s Lotilla’s questionable recommendation at what is now a critical juncture for the Philippine energy sector’s future. Public trust in government has been significantly eroded as the Malampaya “gas field saga” continues to expose increasingly dubious dealings between the Philippine government and vested interests in the private sector.
DR. CELIA LAMKIN
Global Chair and Founder
National Youth Movement for the West Philippine Sea
